Film: Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire

 

GENRE: Action/Comedy/Fantasy
RATING: PG-13 for supernatural violence and language
RUNTIME: 1 hour and 55 minutes
PLATFORM: Movie Theatre
STARRING: Paul Rudd (Ant-Man, Anchorman, Clueless, This is 40)
Finn Wolfhard (Stranger Things); McKenna Grace (Gifted, I,Tonya)
DIRECTOR: Gil Kenan (Monster House, A Boy Called Christmas)
WRITERS: Kenan (Ghostbusters: Afterlife, A Boy Called Christmas);
Jason Reitman (Thank You for Smoking, Up in the Air, Labor Day)
PLOT: An ancient artifact unleashes an evil force that must be stopped by old and new Ghostbusters.

FULL DISCLOSURE: I enjoyed Afterlife a lot. High hopes for this one.

STORY STUFF: While there are some fun moments throughout, I was not really captivated by the story. It took way too long to set everything up. Afterlife had a certain energy that I felt this one was lacking. Maybe it was Phoebe’s teen angsty wish to be a ghost that took me out of the story. There are also a lot more characters to keep track of with old and new. I don’t know why we needed to add Lars to the roster. And while it was fun to see William Atherton return with his blowhard threats, I don’t know how he ascended to mayor, especially after his debacle in the first Ghostbusters film.

ACTING STUFF: Because of the plot devices, Grace does not look like she’s having any fun as Phoebe. Rudd is always his awesome affable self. I really enjoyed Logan Kim as Podcast in the last film but he doesn’t get as much to do. They also have the very funny Kumail Nanjiani but he doesn’t get as many one-liners as I would have liked. Bill Murray only gets a couple scenes but uses them well. Also, enjoyed Patton Oswalt having fun in this film. None of the performances are amazing but not terrible either.    

ARTISTIC STUFF: Good use of ghosts and ice.          

VERDICT: Two and a half stars out of five
SEE IT IF: You enjoy the antics of ghostbusting.
UPCOMING REVIEW:  The Fall Guy

Oscar Recap 2024

 

Here are some thoughts on this year’s Oscars:

·         I got 20/23 again. Was surprised with Sound going to Zone of Interest. Best Actress was a tight race, so not too shocked there.

·         Jimmy Kimmel was pretty good as host but had some awful puns.

·         Having five previous winners present is nice in concept but I would much rather watch a clip of the performances instead of empty words. Show the audience why these people were nominated. The only exception was Nicholas Cage and Sam Rockwell.

·         Most of the banter was awful. Melissa McCarthy and Octavia Spencer’s Chip ‘N’ Dale shtick was cringe-worthy. I did enjoy Danny DeVito and Arnold Schwarzenegger threating Michael Keaton’s Batman.

·         There weren’t many bits but I liked John Cena’s costume category introduction.

·         It’s Mother’s Day in the UK. Now I know.

·         The In Memorium segment has been hurting lately. Stop focusing on the performance and honor those who died. Their clips were so far away.

·         I like that there was a stunt montage but it only shows that they should have a category for this stuff. They should do that instead of casting.

·         I hate the hypocrisy of everyone cheering on the awesomeness of “I’m Just Ken” (which rocked) but then giving the award to Billie Eilish’s boring song. 

·         Loved John Mulaney and his Field of Dreams rant. Let him host this show. C’mon!

·         Stop getting old people to give out the final award. Al Pacino’s reading of the winner was all over the place. I don’t think the academy can use this clip for future montages.

·         Not much else to say. A decent show and I got a bunch right.

Okay, here’s who won:

LIVE ACTION SHORT FILM
THE WONDERFUL STORY OF HENRY SUGAR (predicted)

ANIMATED SHORT FILM
WAR IS OVER! (predicted)

DOCUMENTARY SHORT
THE LAST REPAIR SHOP (predicted)

SOUND
THE ZONE OF INTEREST

ORIGINAL SCORE
OPPENHEIMER (predicted)

ORIGINAL SONG
WHAT WAS I MADE FOR? (predicted)

VISUAL EFFECTS
GODZILLA MINUS ONE (predicted)

MAKE-UP & HAIRSTYLING
POOR THINGS

COSTUME DESIGN
POOR THINGS (predicted)

PRODUCTION DESIGN=
POOR THINGS (predicted)

FILM EDITING
OPPENHEIMER (predicted)

CINEMATOGRAPHY
OPPENHEIMER (predicted)

DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
20 DAYS IN MARIUPOL (predicted)

ANIMATED FEATURE
THE BOY AND THE HERON (predicted)

INTERNATIONAL FEATURE FILM
THE ZONE OF INTEREST (predicted)

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
AMERICAN FICTION (predicted)

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
ANATOMY OF A FALL (predicted)

BEST DIRECTOR
CHRISTOPHER NOLAN [OPPENHEIMER] (predicted)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
DA’VINE JOY RANDOLPH [THE HOLDOVERS] (predicted)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
ROBERT DOWNEY JR. [OPPENHEIMER] (predicted)

BEST ACTRESS
EMMA STONE [POOR THINGS]

BEST ACTOR
CILLIAN MURPHY [OPPENHEIMER] (predicted)

BEST PICTURE
OPPENHEIMER (predicted)

How did you do?

Oscar Prediction 2024

 

It’s that time of year again for my fearless Oscar predictions. While I’m pretty confident that Oppenheimer will win a bunch, there are still a few where there are two good choices and hard to pick.  Just as a reminder, I’m not predicting who I want to win but who I think the Academy will vote for. From ‘smaller’ to ‘bigger’, here we go:

LIVE ACTION SHORT FILM
THE WONDERFUL STORY OF HENRY SUGAR
(Wes Anderson can get this one to tide him over until a Best Picture win.)

ANIMATED SHORT FILM
WAR IS OVER
(Only because I like the animation style over Letter to a Pig)

DOCUMENTARY SHORT
THE LAST REPAIR SHOP
(Repairing musical instruments for public schools may beat book banning)

SOUND
OPPENHEIMER
(Great mix of explosions and eerie quiet.)

ORIGINAL SCORE
OPPENHEIMER
(Some great dramatic music that is not as full of bass like Tenet.)

ORIGINAL SONG
WHAT WAS I MADE FOR? [BARBIE]
(No Dua Lipa?. Want ‘I’m Just Ken’ to win instead of Billie.)

VISUAL EFFECTS
GODZILLA MINUS ONE
(Would rather have Mission: Impossible 7 win just for fun.)

MAKE-UP & HAIRSTYLING
MAESTRO
(I’m guessing for the nose.)

COSTUME DESIGN
POOR THINGS
(Barbie just copied previous doll designs. This is more interesting.)

PRODUCTION DESIGN
POOR THINGS
(Was impressed with Barbie but think this will win instead.)

FILM EDITING
OPPENHEIMER
(Even though it’s long, it is beautifully crafted together.)

CINEMATOGRAPHY
OPPENHEIMER
(Hoyte Van Hoytema knows where to put his camera.)

DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
20 DAYS IN MARIUPOL
(Ukrainian journalists trapped? Yup, a winner to show support for Ukraine.)

ANIMATED FEATURE
THE BOY AND THE HERON
(Spider-Man already has one and another coming. Give it to Miyazaki.)

INTERNATIONAL FILM
ZONE OF INTEREST
(Holocaust films are often winners.)

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
AMERICAN FICTION
(I wish it was a bit funnier. Oppenheimer can’t win everything. I think.)

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
ANATOMY OF A FALL
(Haven’t seen it but heard it was great.)

BEST DIRECTOR
CHRISTOPHER NOLAN [OPPENHEIMER]
(He’s so deserving. I love his films and this is a masterpiece.)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
DA’VINE JOY RANDOLPH [THE HOLDOVERS]
(There’s no doubt that she’s going to win this.)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
ROBERT DOWNY JR. [OPPENHEIMER]
(It’s time he got one. He’s been winning a lot for this film.)

BEST ACTRESS
LILY GLADSTONE [KILLER OF THE FLOWER MOON]
(The academy likes a ‘first’. Emma Stone already has one.)

BEST ACTOR
CILLIAN MURPHY [OPPENHEIMER]
(I found his performance mesmerizing. I feel bad for Paul Giamatti though)

BEST PICTURE
OPPENHEIMER
(It’s pretty much a lock at this point. I’ll be shocked if it doesn’t win.)

Didn’t play last year. The year before I got 20 out of 23 categories. We’ll see what happens this Sunday. 

Film: Dune, Part Two

 

GENRE: Action/Drama
RATING: PG-13 for strong violence, brief strong language
RUNTIME: 2 hours and 46 minutes
PLATFORM: Movie Theatre
STARRING: Timothee Chalamet (Call Me By Your Name, Wonka)
Zendaya (Spider-Man: Homecoming, Euphoria); Javier Bardem (Skyfall)
DIRECTOR: Denis Villeneuve (Arrival, Sicario, Blade Runner 2049)
WRITERS: Villeneuve (Dune); John Spaihts (Passengers, Doctor Strange)
PLOT: Paul Atreides does not want to be a leader but does want revenge against those who destroyed his family.

FULL DISCLOSURE: Haven’t read the books. Enjoyed the first one.

STORY STUFF: While the Dune, Part One was long, it didn’t feel that way because there was enough going on and the pacing worked. That was not the case this time around. There is just way too much time before Paul realizes his ultimate role. Instead of dragging that out, maybe a montage would suffice.  My big questions are about the sandworms. While I enjoyed the initial sandworm riding, I was wondering how they get off the worm? Do they grind to halt and then the person hops off? Also, how do they get a whole bunch of people on the same worm? It seemed tricky enough to get one guy on there. This film has some great dialogue and lots of awesome scenes but it needed a serious trim. Maybe I’ll get more out of it the second time. That’s what happened with the first one.

ACTING STUFF: Chalamet and Zendaya do a great job of anchoring the film. They have enough serious looks and warning-filled dialogue to bring the drama. Luckily, Bardem is around to give some humour as someone who quickly believes. He needs to enunciate more though. When speaking English, he tends to mumble. I was almost happier when he spoke the Fremen language of Chakobsa so I could read the subtitles. Austin Butler (Elvis) is a stand-out as the menacing Feyd-Rautha. I didn’t know he had it in him. He is wonderfully ruthless. I also enjoyed Josh Brolin’s return. I felt that Christopher Walken and Florence Pugh were underused but maybe that will be remedied in the third one. Yeah, expect a Part Three.   

ARTISTIC STUFF: Villeneuve knows how to shoot a film. There is lots of gorgeous cinematography throughout. Love his capturing of scale. Very Freddie Young with a Lawrence of Arabia vibe. Really enjoyed the fight scenes. Hand-to-hand stuff is great. The Fremen hiding in the sand and then suddenly attacking is awesome to watch.         

VERDICT: Three stars out of five
SEE IT IF: You’ve see the first one and have time on your hands
UPCOMING REVIEW:  Oscar Predictions