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Film Review: “Jazz Fest: A New Orleans Story

May 31, 2023 by Mike Smith Leave a Comment

JAZZ FEST: A NEW ORLEANS STORY
Starring: Quint Davis, Jimmy Buffet, Verdine White
Directed by: Frank Marshall and Ryan Suffern
Rated: PG 13
Running time: 1 hr 35 mins
Sony Pictures Classic

They call it the Big Easy. Home of Mardi Gras and Saints. But New Orleans is known for one thing above all others…The New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival – a celebration of the music, food and culture that has defined the city and surrounding areas for centuries.

In the early 1960s, George Wein, the organizer of the famed Newport Jazz Festival, was asked to bring his talents to New Orleans. Unfortunately, the climate of the times postponed the first ever New Orleans Jazz Festival until 1971. “Jazz Fest” is a look inside the event on it’s 50^th Anniversary as well as the events that shaped it.

An event that draws 100,000 people a day for many days, the Festival is probably the only place on Earth where you can see everyone from Tom Jones to Pitbull to Bruce Springsteen on the same bill. Those performers and many more talk about their pride in being asked to perform as well as the profound effect their performances have on not only on the crowd but also the musicians.

The film is full of great performances, both from previous shows and the 50^th, including musical numbers by Ellis Marsalis and his sons, Earth Wind and Fire, Katy Perry, B.B. King, Samantha Fish, Al Green, and many others. Yes, this is called a JAZZ Festival, but all kinds of music, from gospel to soul to folk are well represented and well received. And a quick detour to the swamps gives viewers a taste of Cajun and Zydeco music. It is amazing how much of the area’s culture revolves around music, including funerals. I hope when my time comes that my trip to the cemetery is led by dancers and a big brass section! Even the devastation of Hurricane Katrina in 2005 was dealt with musically as musicians like Jimmy Buffet, Paul Simon and Bruce Springsteen took to the newly built stage to give hope to, as Springsteen sang, the City of Ruin.

Also featured is the amazing food found at the festival, with pretty much everything either fried or made with cream. I want to find the guy making the pork cracklings.

Due to COVID, the festival skipped two years but came roaring back earlier this year, with more than 7,000 musicians on 14 stages and didn’t skip a beat. If you can’t make it down in person, this film is a great way to enjoy the show.

“Jazz Fest: A New Orleans Story” receives five out of five stars.

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Film Review: “Amsterdam”

May 31, 2023 by Mike Smith Leave a Comment

AMSTERDAM
Starring: Christian Bale, Margot Robbie and John David Washington
Directed by: David O. Russell
Rated: R
Running time: 2 hrs 14 mins
20^th Century Studios

They called it “the War to end all Wars.” Of course, history will tell us that it wasn’t, but shortly after WW I things were looking up for a couple of former soldiers. Burt (Bale) was a Park Avenue doctor who married above his station and only went to war when his father-in-law suggested that a man with medals would have some esteem. Harold (Washington), now a lawyer, was part of the all-Black unit in Europe that Burt was given command of. When their former commanding general dies suddenly, they are asked to investigate the death. But they may not like what they find.

Smartly written, with a few odd quirks – the trademark of a David O. Russell film – “Amsterdam” is a who-dunnit with many possible suspects. The trio of friends – Burt, Harold and Valerie (Robbie) – met shortly after the war, when Burt and Harold were patients in a hospital in which Valerie was the nurse. Appalled by the treatment Burt and Harold received, Valerie takes them to a couple of bird-watching friends (Mike Myers and Michael Shannon), who treat them. Because he lost an eye, Burt is given a box of premium glass ones, an item that becomes part of the plot every time Burt is punched – which is often – and they eye falls out. Bale proves himself a fine master of physical comedy and, based on his work here, would be a great casting choice should they ever make a “Columbo” movie.

The cast is vast and at the top of their games, with fine supporting work by Rami Malek, Chris Rock, Zoe Saldana and Robert DeNiro. Russell’s script is tight and he keeps the action moving at a nice pace. You do have to pay attention, as every new twist takes you in a different direction. That being said, head to the nearest cinema and book a ticket to “Amsterdam.”

“Amsterdam” receives five stars out of five.

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Film Review: “WEIRD: the Al Yankovic Story’

May 31, 2023 by Mike Smith Leave a Comment

WEIRD: THE AL YANKOVIC STORY
Starring: Daniel Radcliffe and Lin-Manuel Miranda
Directed by: Eric Appel
Rated: TV 14
Running time: 1 hr 48 mins
Roku

I often hear people talk about the music of their generation. My dad grew up listening to Frank Sinatra. My mom, Elvis. I grew up in the time of the Beatles. But there is another musician that influenced my life profoundly, His name is Al Yankovic.

How do you make a film about a man whose stated life ambition is to write funny lyrics to existing songs? It’s actually quite easy. Picking various points of the accordion master’s life, it seems that

Al (a very good Daniel Radcliffe) has a talent that must be shared with the world. Like my friends and I, Al was a fan of late-night radio host Dr. Demento (an unrecognizable Rainn Wilson) and sends him a tape of some of his songs. Much to his surprise, the Doctor plays his stuff on the air, which leads to Al thinking this could really be the start of something big.

Of course, not everyone thinks Al is a musical genius. Only after he is challenged by legendary DJ Wolfman Jack (Jack Black) to create, on the spot, a parody of Queen’s “Another One Bites the Dust” that he is able to quiet the naysayers. Think Eminem at the end of “8 Mile” and you have a good idea of how things go.

The film plays fast and loose with facts, but fans of Al wouldn’t want it any other way. If you’re a fan of “the Weird one,” then, by all means, give this one a look.

“WEIRD’ receives three and a half stars out of five.

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Film Review: “Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery”

May 29, 2023 by Michael D. Smith Leave a Comment

GLASS ONION: A KNIVES OUT MYSTERY
Starring: Daniel Craig, Edward Norton
Directed by Rian Johnson
Rating: PG-13
Running time: 2 hrs 19 mins
Netflix

The recipient of an Oscar nomination for Best Adapted Screenplay, “Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery” was a critical success while commercially that’s left up in the air since Netflix only gave it a limited, brief theatrical release before streaming it exclusively. For yours truly, “Glass Onion” did not deserve the Oscar nomination like its predecessor did. Writer/director Rian Johnson’s effort is predictable and uninspired. While Daniel Craig is again glorious in his role and the star-studded cast is entertaining, particularly with Edward Norton and Dave Bautista, the story itself lacks the sense of mystery the original had. Many critics often cited all the movie’s star cameos as positive points as to why you should see the film, but even a cameo by the ghost of William Shakespeare doesn’t necessarily mean any given film is good. The overuse of cameos is just lazy filmmaking.

In brief, for those who have perhaps yet to see it, “Glass Onion” takes place during the COVID-19 pandemic on an island retreat off the coast of Greece. Billionaire Alpha technology owner and narcissist Miles Bron (Edward Norton) invites five friends – Alpha head scientist Lionel Toussaint (Leslie Odom Jr.), Connecticut governor Claire Debella (Kathryn Hahn), fashion designer and model Birdie Jay (Kate Hudson), internet influencer Duke Cody (Dave Bautista), and Alpha co-founder Andi Brand (Janelle Monae) – to enjoy a murder mystery weekend on his island. The great, famous detective Beniot Blanc (Daniel Craig) also joins them even though Miles did not send him an invitation but assumes one of his friends did it as a joke.

Unsurprisingly, Benoit solves Miles’s “mystery” within in a matter of moments. However, Benoit warns Miles that his life is in danger as it is revealed that each person there has a motive to kill him. When one of the guests keels over dead then the real mystery only deepens, unless you the viewer have already figured out who the real evildoer is, and it doesn’t take a world-renowned detective to do so.

I will leave the synopsis at that as I do not want to spoil it for anyone who hasn’t seen the film yet. Of course, for those who haven’t I would recommend that you don’t and instead watch the far superior original again, or perhaps for the first time. Yes, Craig is charming, and his character is easily on par with such entertaining detectives as Agatha Christie and Sherlock Holmes. He certainly doesn’t disappoint. It also never ceases to impress me just how good an actor Bautista, who made a name for himself in professional wrestling entertainment, has become. He is a joy to watch. The rest of the cast deliver well enough performances, but they are not memorable. Yes, “Glass Onion” received an Oscar nod, but that doesn’t mean it deserved it, at least in this critic’s humble opinion. Like “Everything, Everywhere All at Once,” it was thoroughly overrated film.

Overall, “Glass Onion” is a one-layer onion that will make you cry over how paper thin it is.

“Glass Onion” receives two stars out of five.

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Film Review: “The Banshees of Inisherin”

May 19, 2023 by Michael D. Smith Leave a Comment

THE BANSHEES OF INISHERIN
Starring: Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson
Directed by Martin McDonagh
Rating: R
Running time: 1 hr 54 mins
Searchlight Pictures

A recipient of nine Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture, Director, and Actor, “The Banshees of Inisherin,” currently available on multiple platforms after being released in the United States last September, is a dark comedy/drama with well-crafted lines of dialogue and excellent acting. It also provides some interesting insight into Irish culture. However, while not as high on the overhyped scale as “Everything, Everywhere All at Once,” “Banshees” remains a long-winded affair that has the pacing of molasses that can lead to a feeling of outright boredom.

Set on the fictional Irish island of Inisherin, “Banshees” takes place in 1923 towards the end of the Irish Civil War. We know that fiddler Colm (Brendan Gleeson) and his drinking buddy Pádraic (Colin Farrell), a bit of a dullard, have been lifelong best friends. When we meet them, Colm, without any warning or explanation, has decided he no longer wants anything to do with Pádraic. This turns the latter’s life upside down as he struggles to figure out why his friend has discarded him.

Pádraic repeatedly attempts to understand why Colm has ended their friendship, even though Colm tells him that he wants to be remembered for something and has been wasting time with dull conversations with Pádraic. Eventually, Pádraic’s dogged determination leads to Colm threatening to cut off his own fingers if Pádraic doesn’t leave him alone, which he incredibly follows through with. It’s all a weird series of events that include Pádraic’s sister, Siobhán (Kerry Condon, the voice of Friday from “Avengers: Infinity War” and “Avengers: Endgame”) leaving for the mainland after getting tired of their senseless feud, something I wanted to do as well while watching it.

English Director Martin McDonagh, who wrote “Banshees” as well as “Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri,” created dialogue that’s masterfully delivered by co-stars Gleeson and Farrell. The accents are not so thick that the actors cannot be understood, but what is not understandable is how overly drawn-out the story is. It’s a one-trick pony that gets old halfway through at the latest as the story leads to nowhere. Essentially, it’s easy to sympathize with Colm.

Great performances and beautiful shots of Irish countryside aside, “Banshees” is an overhyped film that probably require a pint to help get through it.

“The Banshees of Inisherin” receives two-and-a-half stars out of five.

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Film Review: “The Whale”

May 7, 2023 by Michael D. Smith Leave a Comment

THE WHALE
Starring: Brendan Fraser and Hong Chau
Directed by Darren Aronofsky
Rating: R
Running time: 1 hr 27 mins
A24

A box office star in the 1990s and into the 2000s, Brendan Fraser seemingly disappeared in recent years even though he continued to find work. Of course, this thread was discussed ad nauseum during the months leading up to the recent Academy Awards where Fraser’s years of hard work paid off with his own golden statue. It was much deserved for Fraser’s memorable role in the depressing drama “The Whale” is not only the best performance of his career but one of the greatest ever captured in cinema.

Now available everywhere, “The Whale,” based upon a 2012 play of the same name, revolves around Charlie (Fraser), a morbidly obese English instructor who teaches online writing courses with the camera turned off. A complete recluse, his only friend and caregiver is a gruff nurse named Liz (Hong Chau, “The Menu”). She repeatedly tries to get Charlie to see a doctor for his congestive heart failure, but it’s clear early on that he wants to die. His reasoning, though, is a mystery until later in the story.

On one random day, he is visited by Thomas (Ty Simpkins, “Iron Man 3,” “Jurassic World”), a young Christian missionary who tries, unsuccessfully, to convince Charlie that his soul needs saving. What Charlie wants to save instead is his relationship with his estranged and moody teenage daughter, Ellie (Sadie Sink, “Stranger Things”). She wants nothing to do with him because Charlie had abandoned her and her mother (Samantha Morton) to be with another man.

Knowing that death is coming, something he seems to welcome, Charlie bribes Ellie to start visiting him by promising to help her with schoolwork and the prospect of $120,000 going into her bank account. For her part, Ellie is asked not to tell her mother about her visits. As his health deteriorates more rapidly, Charlie’s desire to salvage his relationship with Ellie intensifies.

Directed by Darren Aronofsky (“The Wrestler,” “Pi”), “The Whale” often feels too much like a stage play and it comes off disjointed at times as a result. Aronofsky gets the most out of his cast, yet the story is a little too blah, which matches the overall feel of the film. All quibbles aside, what must be looked upon with awe is Fraser’s unforgettable performance. Forget about his wearing a 300-pound suit to reflect his character’s obesity. What’s important is how tragically sad and depressed his self-loathing character is. Fraser makes his character’s despair and desires tangible to the viewer, allowing us to easily become emotionally invested into Charlie. Without his towering performance, “The Whale” would have been something long forgotten about by now.

Overall, “The Whale” is watchable because of Fraser’s one-for-the-ages performance.

“The Whale” receives three stars out of five.

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“Everything Everywhere All at Once” is big winner at the 95th Annual Academy Awards

March 13, 2023 by Mike Smith Leave a Comment

Everything Everywhere All at Once went into Oscar night leading the pack with (11) nominations so it should be no surprise that the film took him (7) Academy Awards, including Best Picture, at the 95^th Annual Academy Awards. The film also took home both awards in the Supporting categories, Best Actress, Best Original Screenplay, Film Editing and Best Director.

The other major award of the evening was won by Brendan Fraser, who captured Best Actor for his incredible work in The Whale. Germany’s All Quiet on the Western Front was named the Best International Feature Film and also scored awards for Original Score, Production Design and Cinematography while Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio was named the year’s Best Animated Feature. Sarah Polley won the award for Best Adapted Screenplay for Women Talking.

As someone who has watched the awards religiously since 1975, I can say that for the first time in several years, the show delivered. The night was full of many pure emotional moments. From Ke Huy Quan’s moving acceptance speech as he accepted the trophy for Best Supporting Actor to his Everything Everywhere All at Once co-star Jamie Lee Curtis’ tearful tribute to her Oscar-nominated parents, the show had many more high points then in previous years. The evening was capped off by Quan capturing his former Indian Jones and the Temple of Doom co-star Harrison Ford in a bearhug as the latter awarded Everything Everywhere All at Once the night’s final award, Best Picture.

All in all, an enjoyable night with just enough surprises to keep you interested until the end.

Here is a list of the night’s winners:

BEST PICTURE

Everything Everywhere All at Once

ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE

Jamie Lee Curtis, Everything Everywhere All at Once

ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE

Ke Huy Quan, Everything Everywhere All at Once

INTERNATIONAL FEATURE FILM

All Quiet on the Western Front, Germany

DOCUMENTARY (SHORT)

The Elephant Whisperers

DOCUMENTARY FEATURE

Navalni

ORIGINAL SONG

“Naatu Naatu” from RRR

ANIMATED FEATURE FILM

Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

Women Talking

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

Everything Everywhere All at Once

ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE

Brendan Fraser, The Whale

ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE

Michelle Yeoh, Everything Everywhere All at Once

DIRECTOR

Daniel Scheinert and Daniel Kwan, Everything Everywhere All at Once

PRODUCTION DESIGN

All Quiet on the Western Front

CINEMATOGRAPHY

All Quiet on the Western Front

COSTUME DESIGN

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever

ACHIEVEMENT IN SOUND

Top Gun: Maverick

ANIMATED SHORT FILM

The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse

LIVE ACTION SHORT FILM

An Irish Goodbye

ORIGINAL SCORE

All Quiet on the Western Front

VISUAL EFFECTS

Avatar: The Way of Water

FILM EDITING

Everything Everywhere All at Once

MAKEUP AND HAIRSTYLING

The Whale

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Blu-ray Review: “Sniper: Rogue Mission”

September 7, 2022 by Keith Stevenson Leave a Comment

Probably figuring they could oh-so-subtly cash in on some Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation traffic by sticking “Rogue” and “Mission” in the damn title, the NINTH Sniper movie isn’t really a Sniper movie at all. Which, frankly may work to its advantage by deviating from mundane action movie structures and for the fact that it was probably just damn dumb luck it landed here, toying foolishly with absolute parody vibes. With a score that’s a flip between Desperado and an Ocean’s Movie and almost zero action, as well as a weird comedy edge and the cinematography you’d expect from an enthusiastic teen film student who’d suddenly discovered his iPhone cam zoom, Rogue Mission is insanely low budget trash; an absolutely monumental train wreck of a production that is almost impossible to turn away from for its 90 minute duration. I found myself wanting to switch off the Blu Ray playback but I wanted to see where the film was going and how it will get there.

After stumbling onto some sex trafficking thing, former sniper turned terrible CIA agent soon becomes ex CIA agent, so he sits in the kitchen of some rando tech nerd (is there any other kind in movies) with his old enemy Lady Death, and a Homeland Security Agent who clearly isn’t required to do any actual work for a living, for, oh, around 71 minutes until it’s time to spend the remaining $46 of the budget on a ‘showdown’ that also won’t require him to use a sniper rifle (I’m being facetious here). It’s amazingly hard to rate Sniper: Rogue Mission. It’s like a 1/10 movie, but it’s more unintentionally entertaining than a hell of a lot of 5 and 6/10 movies out there. It’s so cheap, and noisy, and bad… that’s it’s actually good. It’s nowhere near a guilty pleasure, absolutely nothing about this film was intentionally good, but the madly misguided enthusiasm thrown at every single aspect of this production makes it wondrously hilarious to watch. It’s almost as if the nobody director behind it shot the film with absolutely no idea what he was handling. No idea of the franchise, the preceding films, the characters, the general plots these features follow, or anything. So much so that he convinced himself he was shooting a low budget heist flick, replete with some imaginative filmmaking techniques and the most ridiculous score of the year. Sniper: Rogue Mission’s ‘high’ points include a spectacularly bad alley fight, which has the score to something like Desperado playing out over it, and drops into John Woo slo-mo upon the explosion of… a thrown rubbish bag. It’s epic in its unintentional humour, with zooms all over the shop, like watching a rip-off of a Sergio Leone standoff at x10 speed. Not enough? Well how about fabled Lady Death – trained to be an assassin from childhood – and some goon having a pistol shootout from behind post boxes on opposing sides of a street. Somebody get this director a copy of Naked Gun! Wait, we’re not supposed to be laughing? See that’s the thing about Sniper: Rogue Mission, it halfway tries to take itself seriously, which only makes it more funny!

In the background, returning Sniper series actor Dennis Haysbert, former President Palmer of 24, and veteran from the underrated David Mamet-crafted The Unit TV series, tries his best to almost pull off the movie’s only good scene. A single dialogue-driven confrontation between old spies, across a bar table. It’s almost tense. The silence, the stares, Haysbert’s inimitable tones. Then they drop the needle and a random score kicks in so loud you’re immediately knocked backwards – before the scene is even over – and you’re abruptly reminded that this isn’t even going to get one good scene. But it we do get a whole clutch of terrible ones that are so bad that you’ll be on the floor laughing at them. If you can see it, for free, whilst heavily intoxicated, then that’s a surprisingly recommended way to spend your time.

In conclusion, the film is laughably terrible but at the same time, irresistibly ridiculous. Truly one of the worst films I’ve seen. If there’s one redeeming quality of Sniper Rogue Mission, it’s knowing what to expect on my 2nd viewing. Then I can adequately prepare by slamming down a six-pack first.

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Concert Review: Roger Waters: This is Not a Drill

September 7, 2022 by Dan Lybarger Leave a Comment

Roger Waters: This is Not a Drill

T-mobile Center/Kansas City, MO

September 3, 2022

IN THE FLESH AND OUTSIDE THE WALL

Near the ceiling of the T-Mobile Center, the electronic signs warned patrons not to use offensive language and advised reporting people who engaged in that sort of discourse to management.

Thankfully, Roger Waters missed that note before hitting the stage last Saturday night. There were enough F-bombs to flatten Moscow.

Throughout his 2½ hour set, the former Pink Floyd bassist, lyricist, singer and driving force made his views on politics explicit. When some Pink Floyd fans lament the activist bent in his more recent music, it’s tempting to wonder if they had simply been using the Floyd for chemical recreation and missed Waters’ agitation in the words for “Us and Them” and the entire George Orwell-inspired album Animals.

At 78, Waters may be campaigning for the release of Wikileaks founder Julian Assange during his performances, and his set seemed like a refutation of some of the themes he and his former bandmates explored in The Wall.

This was for the best.

Waters conceived The Wall because he was disturbed by how fame and massive area shows (like the one he was giving when I saw him) had separated Pink Floyd from their audience.

Nearly 4½ decades later, Waters seemed sociable. The slender Englishman bounced around the stage. He quoted Wilbert Harrison’s “Kansas City” and made a point of thanking fans who had held onto their tickets for two years. Covid ruined a lot of plans. He even left the T-Mobile Center marching through the crowd with the band. He repeatedly acknowledged that his shows were for the fans, and they clearly returned the love.

For a guy who has written tunes about grief, alienation and even the price of nuclear war, Water came off as contagiously giddy. Even when he briefly tripped over the words to one of his newer songs, Waters’ enthusiasm buoyed the entire night.

Opening with “Comfortably Numb,” the performance of the offering from The Wall missed David Gilmour’s soaring and then ominous guitars solos. Nonetheless, it still sounded captivatingly eerie.

That song came with unsettling images of bombed out rooftops and people mindlessly waking through lines as the walked through lines mindlessly. The screens would be raised and lowered at strategic moments and supplemented the newer songs to illustrate why Waters had written pointed tunes line “The Powers That Be” and “The Bravery of Being Out of Range.” He ran a slide show of unarmed people across the world who had died in police shootings. The list seemed even more urgent that night because it included Donnie Sanders, who had died here in Kansas City.

The screens also enabled Waters to add backstory to songs he was performing from Wish You Were Here. Waters still mourns original Pink Floyd leader Syd Barrett and slides of the band’s early lineup made the tunes even more poignant. Seamus Blake’s passionate sax solos on those tunes and on “Money” and “Us and Them” certainly helped. The rest of the band delivered a solid, tightly rehearsed set. Apart from “Comfortably Numb,” they followed Gilmour, Nick Mason and Richard Wright’s original playing on the Floyd songs.

The dancing animated pigs on “Money” made of up for any lack of spontaneity.

In addition, longtime fans were rewarded with the expected lasers, giant inflatable pigs and sheep and theatrics that recalled Alan Parker’s movie of The Wall.

When Waters broke into songs from Amused to Death or Is This the Life We Really Want, the crowd lost none of its enthusiasm. It probably helped that the enormous screens displayed a disclaimer letting anyone who objected to his takes on indigenous rights or police shootings to “f**k off to the bar.”

It’s a nod to his newer song “The Bar,” which deals with being able to freely discuss difficult topics. Waters clearly knows how to entertain (who doesn’t love giant, floating pigs?), and much of his outrage is sadly warranted. His songs may have launched a thousand bong hits, but if Bob Dylan, whom he cited in his show, can write “Blowin’ in the Wind,” Waters can warn us about the urgency of addressing nuclear war.

I attended the show as a guest of Kansas City Veterans for Peace, Chapter 97. I’m merely a former military contractor (a cubicle jockey) who doesn’t want troops being put into peril for a fool’s errand, and nuclear conflict certainly qualifies. Waters correctly cited Kansas’ Dwight D. Eisenhower, who repeatedly expressed many of the same concerns.

That said, I’d like to have a beer with him at a bar sometime. I’m not sure how we’d get along, or if alcohol would be conducive to the topics at hand. I have quibbles about Mr. Assange, but challenging subjects don’t get the attention they need when people simply shut up and sing.

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Film Review 3: Top Gun: Maverick”

May 31, 2022 by Michael D. Smith Leave a Comment

TOP GUN: MAVERICK
Starring: Tom Cruise, Jennifer Connelly
Directed by: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: PG-13
Running Time: 2 hrs 11 mins
Paramount Pictures

Pure, blissful summertime entertainment. Over thirty years in the making, “Top Gun: Maverick” lives up to all the hype and box office returns it has garnered over the past few days. It is nothing less than an epic thrill ride as Tom Cruise proves that a film does not need costumed heroes, grandiose special effects, or special cameos to be a great movie experience. In that respect, Cruise is a throwback to when a movie could be carried by the weight of the just one star’s name at the top of the movie poster. “Top Gun: Maverick” is moviemaking at its best and is a guaranteed good time at the theater.

Naval aviator Captain Pete “Maverick” Mitchell (Cruise), whose insubordination has prevented him from ever rising up the ladder in rank, comes close to being kicked out of the military by Rear Admiral Chester “Hammer” Cain (Ed Harris) after he crashes an experimental aircraft. Instead of having to return to civilian life, Maverick’s champion, Admiral Tom “Iceman” Kazansky (Val Kilmer) gets him transferred to the Top Gun school where he first made a name for himself. It’s not an option to his liking, but Maverick is left with little choice.

When he arrives in San Diego, Maverick is told he is to train an elite group of U.S. Navy aviators for a high-risk mission to knock out an underground uranium enrichment facility in an unnamed, rogue state. Complications abound as he not only has to deal with an antagonistic, clearly jealous superior officer in Admiral Beau “Cyclone” Simpson (Jon Hamm), but he also has to be the teacher of Lieutenant Bradley “Rooster” Bradshaw (Miles Teller), the son of his late wingman, Goose. It’s an estranged relationship and Maverick continues to be haunted by the tragic accident that occurred in the original film.

Of course, the film would not be complete without a bit of a love story, which comes in the form of Penny Benjamin (Jennifer Connelly), the bartender of a local drinking establishment. Their relationship is of the on-again, off-again variety and while Penny was not in “Top Gun” she was mentioned by name as being an admiral’s daughter.

Cruise is in top form with a role reprisal that has him dig far deeper into his character than he ever did before. While there is still a reckless abandon about Maverick, Cruise and the script take it to a whole new level. It’s not that he has a death wish, but he is willing to take any risk afforded to him to seemingly fill a void. There is a deep seeded pain in his soul that is nothing less than PTSD from the experience of losing Goose. It haunts him daily and nightly, and the risks appear to be a way to drown it out. Cruise dominates the silver screen with his presence as he pulls off an incredible performance, punctuated in part by a heart-tugging scene with Kilmer.

Director Joseph Kosinski shot some of the greatest fighter jet footage ever put on film. The visuals are jaw droppingly wild with clearly some of the best pilots in the world demonstrating some absolutely insane skills. No greater recruiting film for the U.S. Air Force or Navy has ever been made.

Overall, if you have not seen “Top Gun: Maverick” yet, then why haven’t you?

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Film Review: “The French”

May 25, 2022 by Michael D. Smith Leave a Comment

THE FRENCH
Starring: Bjorn Borg
Directed by: William Klein
Ratied: unrated
Running Time: 2 hrs 10 mins

It was the Spring of 1981. A former Hollywood actor was the new president. The Soviet Union was a threat to world peace. (Some things haven’t changed.) Tennis rackets were predominantly wooden, but the sport itself was alive and thriving in what was truly a golden age. Originally released in 1982, “The French” is a re-released documentary that gives us unfettered access to some of the greatest legends of tennis as they make their way through the French Open tournament. Thanks to filmmaker William Klein, who is now 96 years old, tennis enthusiasts can bask in the nostalgia of watching the likes of Bjorn Borg, John McEnroe, Jimmy Connors, Chris Evert, and Ivan Lendl during their peak.

Taking placed from May 25^th through June 7^th, 1981, the 85^th French Open was held per tradition on the outdoor clay courts at Roland Garros in Paris. Klein gives us a backstage pass that allows us to watch private interactions between players as they warm up or as they hang out in the locker room. Better than any “Hard Knocks” episode, “The French” is honest without any frills. We get a true sense of the almost happy-go-lucky nature of Yannick Noah compared to the somber, cool, and determined Borg.

This was an age of tennis when there were all sorts of personalities involved, and the game was played in a much purer form rather than today’s version where titanium rackets smash tennis balls at over 100 mph. The film’s pacing barely hits the speed limit, though, as it often drags along with way too many elongated shots of the crowd rather than focusing more on the players. Furthermore, “The French” focuses most of its time on the men while the female greats are left as almost an afterthought with Evert getting the bulk of the screen time.

The film’s biggest highlight is when McEnroe faces off against Lendl in the quarterfinals. Younger generations have no clue about his legendary tirades on the court and McEnroe does not disappoint during his match. Overall, the lone notable fact about the 1981 tournament is that it was Borg’s 11^th Grand Slam title and would ultimately be his last.

Overall, “The French” is a neat look into a time capsule, but will be most enjoyed by tennis fanatics with little appeal beyond that.

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Win a Blu-Ray copy of “Spider-man: No Way Home.”

April 21, 2022 by Mike Smith 4 Comments

Media Mikes has teamed up with their friends at Sony Pictures Home Entertainment to give one random reader a chance to win a Blu-ray copy of one of last year’s biggest box office hits, “Spider-man: No Way Home.”

All you have to do is let us know below what upcoming super hero film you are most looking forward to. Pretty easy.

One random entry will be chosen and notified by email. This giveaway ends at 10:00 pm EST on Sunday, April 24th.

GOOD LUCK!

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Film Review: “Lotawana”

February 4, 2022 by Jeremy Werner Leave a Comment

Starring: Todd Blubaugh and Nicola Collie
Directed by: Trevor Hawkins
Rated: N/R
Running Time: 97 minutes

Forrest (Blubaugh) is a wanderer. He spends his days tending to his sailboat, which doubles as his house, on a Missouri lake. He goes to land for essentials and to zip around town on his motorcycle. One day he finds another wanderer named Everly (Collie). The two fall for each other immediately and discuss a future that may never happen.

“Lotawana” reminds me a lot of 2016’s “American Honey,” and not just because both had scenes filmed in and around Kansas City, my hometown. Both films show aimless young adults coming into their own as adults even though they don’t want to become adults and do everything in their power to avoid that inevitability. Forrest, who we literally know almost next to nothing about, enjoys a simple life on a Missouri lake daydreaming about journeys around the globe he will never take. Everly, who we know barely a little bit more about, listens to these daydreams and adds to them. Neither of them is following through with those daydreams, but I won’t spoil why.

As “Lotawana” goes through the motions, we learn very little about our characters, picking up hints from the nature surrounding them as well as interactions they have with people who also live on or around the lake. Because of its vague nature, it wouldn’t surprise me if viewers had different theories as to what is happening and why. Personally, I feel like Forrest and Everly represent two ideologies when it comes to youth.

Forrest appears to be a symbol for privilege. We never really learn what he does or how he has money, but it’s clear he has no problem financially maintaining a boat with food. He also seems to be in no hurry to find a career unless that career is an unpaid internship he gives himself on his boat. Everly, who has a rocky relationship with her family, appears to be fleeing trauma she’s not willing to confront yet, if at all. Both find solace in their wanderlust, but both are following it for wrong reasons, meaning that the happiness we see on screen will eventually turn into conflict unless one of them makes the first move by making an adult decision.

Very rarely do I find myself enjoying a film that features no exposition, much less dialogue that reveals the inner workings or backstory of our characters. Most of the time I’d probably find this frustrating, but thanks to some outstanding cinematography and vignettes involving Forrest and Everly’s relationship, “Lotawana” is gorgeous and serendipitous at times. If “Lotawana” is any indication, first-time film director Trevor Hawkins has a bright future ahead.

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Film Review: “A Shot Through the Wall”

January 21, 2022 by Jeremy Werner Leave a Comment

Starring: Kenny Leu, Ciara Renee and Clifton Davis
Directed by: Aimee Long
Rated: NR
Running Time: 89 minutes
Vertical Entertainment

There are plenty of days where I feel like nuance is missing. I say that because we have so much content at our fingertips now, it’s hard to really dive into the meat of something. We need to get to the next piece of content to devour, so we look at the headline or photo and move on. Without diving too deep into the realm of politics “A Shot Through the Wall” still manages to do a very impressive job of reminding us that not everything is black and white.

Mike Tan (Leu), the son of two Chinese immigrants, is a fresh-faced street cop in New York City. Unfortunately for him, his white and also fresh-faced partner looks for trouble where it isn’t, spotting a few young African-American teens who “should be in school.” One of those teens flees, for reasons we don’t know and soon won’t care about. Tan, just a dozen steps behind the teen, ends up in an apartment complex, unholsters his gun, but accidentally fires off a shot under pressure. That one accidental gunshot enters an apartment, killing an African-American man and setting off a chain of events.

“A Shot Through the Wall” plays with a lot of unfortunate things that happen during officer-involved shootings. We see the immediate outrage from the public, even when all the facts aren’t in yet. We also see the cellphone footage that’s released of Officer Tan attempting to revive the man he accidentally shot. What the cellphone doesn’t capture, is everything that led up to that shooting, as well as everything after. Nonetheless, the cellphone footage captures only one part of the incident which still paints Officer Tan in a negative light. We also see accusations of racism and conspiratorial thinking along the lines of police cover-ups, as well as the threat of vigilantes looking for their own brand of justice. On the flip side, we do see how police attempt to smooth things over, through potential plea deals and PR campaigns. While all of this is interesting, that’s not what makes “A Shot Through the Wall” unique, because we’ve seen this before in other movies.

“A Shot Through the Wall” takes us through the emotional toll this takes on Tan, his family, his African-American fiancée and others. The movie does make a critical mistake in not showing us the emotional pain the actual victims family and friends are going through, but that may also be a creative choice on the end of Aimee Long in her first written and directed film. She’s not shy about showing some unmentionable truths, like the fact that Tan isn’t racist at all, but his parents are. Or the fact that Tan goes back and forth on whether or not to put his relationship on the line by publicly proclaiming, “I have a black girlfriend, so I can’t be a racist who shot an unarmed black man.”

In the end though, and throughout the movie, the audience has to wonder: Is Officer Tan innocent? It’s a tough call and the movie, to it’s credits, opts to let Officer Tan say if he is or isn’t himself before the credits roll. “A Shot Through the Wall” isn’t about red vs. blue, Black Lives Matter vs. Blue Lives Matter, or any of the usual nonsense that’s associated with officer-involved shootings nowadays. It’s about the pain of it all. For that, I’m grateful I watched “A Shot Through the Wall” because we sometimes need a reminder that we’re all humans on this random spinning globe and the only way to confront pain is head-on.

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Filed Under: Film Reviews, Movies, Uncategorized Tagged With: a shot through the wall, aimee long, film, film review, jeremy werner, kenny leu, ...

5 Top Reasons Why Gamblers Choose a Casino Not on GamStop

December 8, 2021 by Mike Gencarelli Leave a Comment

GamStop is an effective measure against gambling addiction. Players who struggle to control their spending may exclude themselves from the biggest sites. This closes access to UKGC-licensed casinos, but you can access the best games through other sites. Are there any legit reasons to do so?

Actually, quite a few. If you look at non-GamStop operators listed at CasinoWise, you will see that these are trusted platforms packed with first-class entertainment. We have looked at the latest reviews, casino features, and other factors to come up with these five strengths.

1. Fewer Restrictions

The first reason is obvious. You can easily gain access even if you are on the GamStop list. These platforms are powered by excellent software products. Usually, the sites accept visitors from all parts of the United Kingdom. Any limitations are only moderate. You can resume playing at any time you like, without much effort.

2. Safety of Transactions

These websites are also licensed, so they are safe and secure. Deposits and withdrawals are accepted through a range of methods. Players appreciate the convenience of payments. Support is also reachable at any time of day or night.

3. Smooth Gameplay

These casinos are also optimized for mobile use. Their games work on any desktop or portable device, such as a tablet or a smartphone. The sites adapt to smaller screens perfectly. All of your favourite games are easy to play on the go.

4. Range of Games

These casinos have spectacular collections of top-rated content. You may find all of the games you adore, be it blackjack or video slots. One platform may be packed with hundreds of titles from as many as 80 studios. You are bound to find your favourites and discover other thrilling games.

Usually, the collection is divided into categories: table games, slots, and live dealer options. You may connect to a real croupier and play in real-time. This is the most realistic type of gambling to date. Finally, you may find games that are not usually found at UKGC casinos, such as slots with large jackpots.

5. Better Bonuses

Like any other gambling sites, these casinos have different rewards and incentives to keep new and existing members inspired. The platforms do not have to comply with tough regulations, so they spend less on extra services, and offer higher bonuses as a result.

As a new member, you may be eligible for free spins, match bonuses, or enticing gifts. These translate into hours of free playtime. Loyalty systems add another layer of rewards like higher bonuses and exclusive games.

Final Words

Casinos outside of GamStop usually have a license from offline jurisdictions. They are safe and secure, just like the restricted sites. You will find hundreds of games, high bonuses, impeccable graphics, and sound effects. Overall, this is a great way to enjoy gambling despite self-exclusion.

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