'Compton' Brings Rap History To Life

As a child in the 80's and 90's I was too young to know exactly who N.W.A. was, or at least I thought I was.  As I was watching Straight Outta Compton I recognized several events in the film.  I remember seeing N.W.A.'s first album cover, hearing several songs like "Fuck the Police", and listening to Dr. Dre's "Chronic" album.  I was surprised how much about N.W.A. I knew, but I think this movie was made so that everyone could know more.

Directed by F. Gary Gray (the man who gave us Friday), this film is about the rise and fall of a hip hop group that influenced the country in the late 80's and early 90's.  Their were five members in the group, but Dj Yella and MC Ren take a back seat as the focus of the film gets handed off between Easy-E, Dr. Dre, and Ice Cube.  At the height of their popularity Ice Cube splits off from N.W.A. because of his differences with Easy-E.  Meanwhile, Dr. Dre is also being lured away from the group as he gets tired of the gangsta life style and just wants to make music.  However, when tragedy strikes one of their own all the members of the group once known as N.W.A. must try and forgive each other before it's too late.

The only actors in this movie I recognize is Aldis Hodge as MC Ren and Paul Giamotti and N.W.A.'s manager, Jerry Heller.  Giamotti didn't phone his performance in like some of his recent jobs, but it still wasn't near what his potential is.  I was a bit skeptical of Ice Cube's son playing his father in this film.  I was worried he was just another child of a famous star who gets the breaks other hard working actors in Showbiz spend years trying to get.  But O'Shea Jackson Jr. was pretty good at playing his dad.  The resemblance is uncanny.  The rest of the cast didn't do a bad job either, but nothing outstanding or memorable.

With a running time of 147 minutes the film left me wishing it would have ended closer to 127 minutes.  It drags on a bit at the end.  The movie covers almost a decade with these characters so some events are cut to just one scene and then never explored later on.  I wished it would have been more focused on a certain point in time, and also on a certain character.  I couldn't tell who's perspective I was supposed to be witnessing these events through.  Though I think the front runner is Dr. Dre.

While the film did show a few times N.W.A. acted aggressively I imagine it left quite a bit out.  I'm always cautious about biographic movies that first have to sanctioned by the person or their family.  I never feel like we get all sides of the character(s), or the reality of their lives.  Dre was portrayed in this film as the most straight-laced member of the group, but one line of dialogue tries to pivot the time he beat up a journalist in the early 90's.

Of course the most enjoyable part of this movie was all the references.  From Ice Cube writing Friday in his living room, to the brief appearances by Snoop Dogg and 2Pac, this film flashes back to a lot of things I had stored in the back of my mind from my youth.  While the movie may go on a tad too long I hear the director's cut is three hours long.  But I enjoyed seeing an inside look at the lives of these famous musicians whose songs I still listen too.  I can't tell you how much "California Love" still gets me amp'd.  Also, the last line of the movie is terrific.  "Yo Dre, what're you gonna call it?"  "Aftermath."  I remember buying that album the week it came out!    

RATING:  C+

The Man From U.N.C.L.E. Will Sneak Up And Surprise You

With mega blockbusters coming out this year like Avengers: Age of Ultron and Star Wars: The Force Awakens still to come we seem to forget that 2015 is the year of spies.  Kingsmen: The Secret Service seemed to please everyone, Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation is doing very well, and the next James Bond film, Spectre, is set to come out this Fall. However, this weekend we get a spy film I haven't seen in a while; the classic sixties spy adventure.  

Based on the 1960's television series, Henry Cavill and Armie Hammer are agents Solo and Illya.  Both from opposite sides of the Cold War, and both despise the other.  However, when nuclear war is set to erupt from an unknown party the American and Russian agents must team up to bring down the bad guy.  Along for the ride is actress Alicia Vikander; best known for her part in Ex Machina.  

The chemistry between Cavill and Hammer was quite a delight in the film but to me the one who shined brighter was Cavill.  The current Man of Steel played the James Bond stereotype perfectly.  He was a spy who was good with the ladies, good with the jokes, and had quite the light touch when it comes to robbing the bad guys.  Maybe it's because the CIA recruited him out prison after becoming a world renown thief.  On the other hand, Hammer's character has a quick temper, which is a constant character flaw that gets him in trouble throughout the film.  The only other notable actor in this movie is Hugh Grant from British Intelligence; but sadly isn't in enough of the film. 

Director Guy Ritchie's style I think works perfectly with this genre film.  The characters were sharp and so was the dialogue.  Some of the plot may have been predictable, but I haven't smiled so much in a theater since I saw that Avengers round shot a few months back.  Another lackluster part of the film was the relationship between Hammer and Vikander's characters.  Their semi-romance just didn't seem to work for me because I couldn't understand why these two people would be attracted to each other given their personalities.

But, there is still plenty to like in this film.  As I was walking out I kept humming songs from the movie. I think because the music had such an impact in each scene.  For example, Solo just sits in a truck and eats a sandwich, while listening to the radio, as Illya is having a dog fight with some bad guys on boats.  It was really funny.  And as a guy who also sells suits for a living I also loved the wardrobe.  Not just the sweet 3-button suits Cavill wore, but also the fun sixties dresses Vikander was in. 

I will also give Ritchie some credit on the run time.  Some movies these days seem to drag out and go on too long, but as the film reached it's climax Ritchie did a mulit-split screen action sequence that could have lasted ten minutes, but was over in less than three.  It helped speed things along to get back to the plot and characters of the film, and kept the film under two hours.  Besides, once you've seen one cliche spy movie shoot out you've seen them all.

I really think this film has something for everyone(over the age of 13) and I would definitely recommend it over any film that has come out within the last month.  Although, I have not seen Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation but I saw the previous two, and it's all the same at this point.  If you don't believe me just ask Honest Trailers.   

When is comes down to it this movie did several things for me.  It helped convince me Henry Cavill can play more than just Superman, Guy Ritchie is starting to become of my favorite directors, and reminded me how good classic spy movies were.  These days people just make an action movie with some government agents and call it a spy movie.  When was the last time Tom Cruise seduced the female villain just for kicks?  Or when did Daniel Craig walk into a room and immediately charm everyone into liking him?  This is old school, Sean Connery, spying my friends with a lot of laughs.

By the end of the film it's all set up for "the team" to do a sequel and I am itching for more.   I think Cavill found another franchise for him to continue besides the DCCU, and Hammer has found a role he hasn't sucked at in quite a few years.  Now I just have to convince my wife to give this film a try so I can see it again, because this was last on my schedule of summer movies.  Now give me Star Wars!  

RATING:  B 

My Top 5 Out Of Character Comic Book Movie Moments

The work "trainwreck" can be used to describe more than one movie currently playing in theaters.  Fox's Fantastic Four is now surrounded with drama as it's director lashes out at the studio on social media and it becomes a box office flop; barely making half of it's projected opening weekend numbers.  My thoughts on the film aside, I did find it odd that while the movie had Johnny Storm in it, a.k.a. The Human Torch, there was actually no sign of the character anywhere in Michael B. Jordan's performance.  

This isn't the first time film makers have taken liberties with comic book heroes to serve their movie.  But to change a character completely is almost as bad as calling your film an X-Men movie, but not having any trace of an actual X-Men root anywhere in the movie *cough*Brett Ratner*cough*.  I for one don't mind changing a character trait for another adaptation so long as it doesn't change what the original character stands for.  So after a little thinking I've got my top 5 moments in comic book movies that totally went against their character archetype.   

5) THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN

Peter Parker Stops His Bully From Bullying Someone Else

I always thought Tobey Maguire was the perfect Spider-Man casting.  He was shorter than the average male, wasn't too handsome, and overall looked like a nerd.  However, Andrew Garfield was the same height and stature as his bully; Flash Thompson.  In one scene, Peter stops Flash from picking on another fellow nerd.  Now, post-spider powers, Parker may have had the confidence to stand up to Flash, but pre-spider powers Peter would have seen the incident, thank God it wasn't him, and kept walking.  Peter Parker had no self-esteem before he become Spider-Man.  But after getting bitten he became a cocky little punk whenever he was slinging webs.

4)  FANTASTIC FOUR: RISE OF THE SILVER SURFER

Mr. Fantatic Busts A Move On The Dance Floor

For Reed's bachelor party Johnny decides to throw him a massive shindig complete with a fully stocked bar, dance floor, and lots of girls.  This of course is not Reed's scene at all.  Mr. Fantastic can barely lift his head from his microscope to talk to his wife.  He'd be sitting in the corner by himself at his own party; let alone nowhere near the dance floor.  This moment makes no sense and makes me truly believe the people behind this film didn't know the FF at all.

3)  BATMAN AND ROBIN

Batman Attends A Public Event

There is no much wrong with this film that goes against Batman myth I could go on "forever" about it.  But the moment that makes the least amount of sense is when Batman tries to lay a trap for Mr. Freeze.  He offers the Wayne diamonds up as bait, and Batman and Robin as security.  Batman didn't even show up to Superman's funeral!  He is only seen by those he's saved and savaged.  His power is him being purely myth to the general public, not at a charity event like he's an NFL player from the Make A Wish foundation.  This moment was followed by the Bat-credit card.  Oh Joel Schumacher, what did you do!

2) MAN OF STEEL

Jonathan Kent Tells His Son To Let People Die

"Maybe."  It was the word I shuttered at as I heard Kevin Costner say it in the trailer for Man of Steel.  I was hoping it was an editing trick for the trailer to spark more interest that this would not be the boy scout version of Superman.  However, as I watched the film, it indeed was in the movie. "What was I supposed to do?  Just let them die?"  "Maybe."  Oh come on!  Clark gets his moral compass from Jonathan and Martha Kent, and Pa Kent would never have told his son to let a school bus full of children die just to protect his own secret.  That moment goes against everything Pa Kent and Superman stand for.  Damn you David Goyer and Zach Snyder!  Now I'm reminded why I'm trying not to get my hopes up for Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice.

1)  X-MEN ORIGINS: WOLVERINE

Deadpool Has His Mouth Sewn Shut

His nick name is The Merc With A Mouth.  For about ten glorious minutes we got to see Ryan Reynolds bring to life the foul mouth, fast talking, Wade Wilson.  It was the only good ten minutes in the film.  The next time we see the character he has his mouth sewn shut and sporting all kinds of mutant powers.  Most of Deadpool's charm lyes in his wit and speech.  Luckily this atrocity seems to be rectified based on the latest Deadpool trailer.  The film is set to come out next year and looks to find Reynolds back as Wade Wilson doing what both of them were meant to do; never shutting up.

'Fantastic Four' Fumbles At The Finish Line

I am one of those rare film fans who did not hate the last interpretation of the Fantastic Four starring Chris Evans and Jessica Alba.  I thought Rise of the Silver Surfer was ridiculous and making Galactus a giant storm cloud was a horrible decision, but the previous film I thought had a lot of good qualities. It nailed some key FF traits like Johnny and Ben's bickering, Reed focusing so much on his work he is oblivious to Sue's advances, and Ben needing Reed to wrap himself around Ben to calm him down.  In order to prepare myself for this film adaptation I read the source material; Ultimate Fantastic Four.  The relationships and characters were a bit different compared to their classic counterparts; a point I had to keep reminding myself as I watched this film.  

Reed Richards is a genius.  The young man solves inter dimensional travel and is recruited by Dr. Franklin Storm to join a government funded group to travel to that other dimension.  Helping Reed is Dr. Storm's emo daughter, Sue, his rebellious son, Johnny, and a guy who likes to crash government servers, Victor Von Doom.  The kids travel to this other world, along with Reed's friend Ben, but of course it goes horribly wrong.  Soon they all exhibit strange abilities that will come in handy as a great evil is about to strike at them and possibly destroy the planet.

Director Josh Trank has already gone on Twitter saying the film currently in theaters is not the version he agreed to do with 20th Century Fox, and I've seen nothing but bad reviews of the movie.  So walking into this film I expected the worse, but as the movie went along I was quite enjoying it.  It was less jokes and fun than the previous FF films, but still interesting.  The characters seemed a bit under developed, but over an hour into the film I was liking what Trank and his crew had done. WARNING! MILD SPOILERS: Then Victor Von Doom resurfaced and the film took a nose dive.  Dr. Doom started killing people for no reason and had no motivation for doing so.  The heroes as well seemed to act differently and the dialogue became very cheesy and forced.  It was if Trank said "F%ck It" after 75% of the film was edited and walked out, leaving a scared editor to piece together what he felt like was the film's ending.

One of the weakest parts in this film was the relationships.  All of the actors are capable of good performances but their interactions weren't great.  I felt no chemistry between Sue and Reed, and Michael B. Jordan played The Human Torch, but that was no Johnny Storm I had ever read before.  However, his version of the character worked in the context of the film so I'm ok with it; or I would have been if the film's ending delivered.  I felt like the focus should have been more on Reed's journey, even though he was obviously still the main character.  His relationship with Ben was set-up but never fully realized.  I think that could have been the best part of the film, again, if they just developed it more.  

Visually, I was happy with how the characters looked.  I thought The Thing looked the best out of any interpretation on screen, and The Human Torch has been done wrong in the past, but worked in this instance.  However, I'm not sure what they were trying to do with Dr. Doom, both in look and the character overall.

Fantastic Four is not a Marvel Studios film.  It's not full of jokes and action.  It's a serious sci-fi film that I thought would have worked well if the ending would have paid off.  I feel like there is another 20 minutes of the movie left in the editing bay that could help the 3rd Act.  Given Trank's social comments I doubt we'll get a Director's Cut of the film like we got with X-Men: Days of Future Past, but I am anxious to see the deleted scenes on the DVD to see if their ever was a better ending to this film we just didn't get.  Say what you will about Tim Story's FF films, at least they had follow through.  Also, worst delivery of "It's Clobberin Time" ever.

RATING:  D+

P.S. There is no mid or end credit scene. You're Welcome.

Deadpool Trailer Looks True To Character

So the first trailer for the upcoming Deadpool movie has been released and above is the red band version of it.  It premiered last night on Conan as Ryan Reynolds showed up in full costume to promote the film he seems to have put his heart and soul into.

For those who don't remember, Reynolds first played the Merc with a Mouth in 2009's X-Men Origins: Wolverine.  But the film makers made the biggest mistake about a character who's known for his quick wit and zany dialogue; they sewed his mouth shut.  Since then Reynolds has been the strongest advocate for the advancement of a true adaptation of the character, and judging from this trailer we might just get it.

Reynolds will play Wade Wilson, an assassin who becomes physically and emotionally scarred, and then proceeds to cause chaos as a sutio hero in the Marvel U.  From the trailer it appears that Fox is really trying to give Wilson a good backstory to make the character likable and relatable.  I can get behind this so long as when he his in the red costume he's a total nut ball.  Deadpool annoys everyone one in the Marvel Universe because he never shuts up and has a loose moral code for killing bad guys.  He's also known constantly for breaking the fourth wall and talking to the audience; which I would love to see in this film.

Truth be told though, I'm not a big Deadpool fan.  My brother however is.  I get the appeal.  I like the character.  But I feel he is great as a supporting character and not a lead.  I am interested to see this film, especially after seeing this trailer, but not as excited as seeing X-Men: Apocalypse.  I am however ecstatic that Fox seems to be sticking to the root of the character this lots of perverted jokes and a violent R-rating.  I'm not sure how this Deadpool will then fit into Fox's PG-13 X-Men Universe they are creating, but I think they are doing right by the source material, which studios need to realize is sometimes the best way to go.  

So for now, I'm on board.  I'm curious to see how Colossus will fit into this film, or if any other X-Men show up (come on Hugh Jackman).  But come February I'll be at the theater hoping for another successful and entertaining comic book film.  How else are we supposed to waste our time until Batman v Superman comes out?

Original Animated Transformers Movie Still the Best

On my morning drive today I decided to listen to my animated movie playlist on my ipod.  This collection of songs range from soundtracks Aladdin to South Park: Bigger, Long, and Uncut. But just as I was almost to my place of employment "Dare" by Stan Bush came on and that really got me jazzed.  This being one of two songs Stan Bush does for the soundtrack of Transformers: The Movie.  No, not the original Michael Bay film, the very first Transformers film that was released in 1986 that has way better characters, plot, and music than any of the live-action adaptations.  If you haven't seen it, or like the franchise in any fashion, this is my plea as to why you should BUY the film right now!

In the future year of 2005(which is now the past) the Autobots and Decepticons war has been raging through the galaxy for years, but after a devastating battle has left both sides leader-less they must figure out where to go next.  However, this new generation can not wallow long for a force known as Unicron is ravaging it's way through the galaxy, and has its sites set on their home world of Cybertron. 

 First off, the voice cast is great with Brat Pack member Judd Nelson as Hot Rod; the film's lead and new hero.  On the opposite end is the late Leonard Nimoy as Galvatron; the new leader of the Decepticons.  Throw in Robert Stack, Orson Welles, and that Micro Machine guy as Blurr, and you've got a cast that is top knotch that comes across great.

Next, the plot is way beyond anything Michael Bay ever gave us.  Granted, this film's main purpose was to introduce the next line of toys for Hasbro, but their are a lot of fan favorite characters that bite the dust.  This leaves our new heroes traveling across the galaxy to try to get to Cybertron in time.  The Autobots get stuck on strange worlds with strange creatures that are quite entertaining.  It's like Star Wars blended with Transformers to give us the ultimate space journey movie!

Finally, it's all about the music!  I have been patronized many a times in my life for my love of this soundtrack.  If I were to take one album that optimized 80's music this would be it.  It has hair band rock, inspiring synthesized songs, and a weird song by Weird Al.  "Dare" and "The Touch" are on my exercise playlist that help me stay pumped.  To this day, I still get chills when "The Touch" plays at the end of the film as Hot Rod, having gone through his heroes journey, tells his friends to "transform and roll out."

Like I said, it's a film of epic proportions that can only be done right through animation.  It's got a serious tone to it that I would not recommend for young kids.  In fact, when the film was originally released some parents wrote Hasbro complaining about the mature content that their kids had now seen.  They received so many complaints it urged Hasbro to make some changes to their next animated film G.I. Joe: The Movie.

Turn off the lights, turn off your cell phones, and prepare for an animated film that some may have never experienced.  By the end of it you'll be just as mad as I was about Bay's treatment of Arcee in Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen.  That movie continues to disappoint even years later.

Marvel's Ant-Man Waste Another Villain

Like Aquaman, Ant-Man is known to the general audience as a laughable comic book hero.  What good is a guy who can shrink down to the size of an ant?  Director Peyton Reed, Paul Rudd, and the rest of Marvel Studios set to prove that they can make another unknown property popular just like Guardians of the Galaxy.

In this film Rudd plays Scott Lang, a smart ex-con who got thrown in jail because he was defying "the man." Scott wants to get is life back on track, back into his daughter's life, and scientist/millionaire Hank Pym wants to help.  Pym, played by Michael Douglas, wants Scott to break into his company and steal a prototype suit that will allow a solider to shrink down to micro size and be stronger than average size.  Pym's former protege Darren Cross, played by Corey Stoll, disagrees.  He wants to sell these suits and make billions, or finally gain approval from his father figure.  That's the confusing part to me.

Coming off of the epic Avengers: Age of Ultron it was nice to get a much more quiet film from Marvel to end Phase 2 of their cinematic universe.  Ant-Man was a heist movie with superheroes.  Scott had to break into a highly guarded building to steal a suit.  It was pretty straight forward and simple.  The side stories however were not.  This is a film about fathers and their children.  Scott and Hank's relationship to their daughters were at the forefront with Pym also being a father figure to both Darren and Scott.  Hank and his daughter Hope, played by Evangline Lilly, was done pretty well, but his disappointed mentor role for Darren fell flat.

Throughout the entire film I didn't get if Cross was trying to make the shrinking suit because he finally wanted Pym's approval, or if his first goal was to make money. He was like a mixture of Obadiah Stane and Loki; only not fleshed out enough.  Instead, Yellowjacket will just be another throw away Marvel villain.

I liked the smallness(no pun intended) of this film.  Hank warned that the world would be in danger if Cross succeeded, but given that Falcon gave Ant-Man a run for his money do you really think Iron Man or Thor would even break a sweat against Yellowjacket?  In any event, Michael Pena gets the "Steals The Movie" award as Scott's friend who is clearly there for comic relief.  His role could have gone the way of other bad comic relief like Jar Jar Binks and those racists robots in Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen.  But Pena made it work.  Granted the film had just a little too much humor for my taste, but it was also partly what made it feel so different from the last few Marvel films we've gotten.

I think the entire cast did a really good job with their parts.  But if anything, what Ant-Man suffered from was editing.  It felt like there was quite a few quick cuts that, as a person who has not only watched movies his entire life but also studied film making, were very noticeable.  Some people say the film seemed too long.  I think slowing things down to explore more of the relationships would have been better. 

For me, the two things that shined in this movie were how well the shrinking effects were done, and also the dialogue.  The script was very solid, and I was glad to see Edgar Wright, the man originally tapped to direct this film, got his due in the credits for his contributions.  

Overall, I think Ant-Man is a decent film.   It's no where near the quality of Captain America: The Winter Solider, but far from the garbage Iron Man 3 was.  It's got just a little bit too many silly moments to make it great, but it created some great characters.  I like Scott and Hope and I can't wait to see them incorporated into the bigger MCU scope.  

RATING:  C

P.S.  Too many MCU references.  "Why not call the Avengers" was fine.  "They're probably too busy dropping cities on people" was too much.