I’m continuing what I began in my last post, ranking my best films of the summer in descending order. Here are my thoughts on the films that didn’t quite make the top tier:
7.*) Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted (A-)
Why I Liked It:
This movie is such a funny crowd pleaser, so big, bright, colorful, zany, and joke-a-minute fast-paced that if you leave the theater without a smile on your face, you must be made of stone. The Madagascar series keeps improving, each installment exponentially better than its predecessor. This time around, Noah Baumbach had a hand in the screenplay, and the results are manic and giddy but mostly positive. As always, Dreamworks animation is easy on the eyes. The colors are vibrant, stunning. In this franchise, the supporting characters always steal the show. But this time around, what a show they steal! All of the circus animals are welcome additions, but Frances McDormand’s sociopathically delightful Capitaine Dubois takes the cake!
Why You Might Not:
The movie takes about twenty minutes to find its rhythm, so the beginning is a bit (slow doesn’t seem right given the frantic pacing, but) forced. The jokes come too fast and don’t always land. And as usual with the Madagascar series, the four central characters are by far the least interesting. Also, if you’re a stickler about things making sense and happening in a logical, reasonable way, well…you might want to pick another movie (not The Dark Knight Rises).
7.*) Brave (A-)
Why I Liked It:
Brave reminds us of the power inherent in nature and the danger and mystery lurking in what lies beyond. Pixar’s animation has never been so beautiful—though Wall-E did have some stunning views of space. The opening scene with the coolly alluring will-o’-the-whisps left me spellbound and eager to see the dark fairy tale that followed. I’ve heard people complain that the stakes aren’t high enough, but my three-year-old was beside herself with terror and concern, at times throwing her blanket over her head, at times unable to look away, at all times assuring me in fretful tones that she would never ever feed
me anything she got from a witch ever. If you believe in the magic, the stakes couldn’t be higher.
I loved the whimsy of the “wood carver” scene, and the great vocal performances by Kelly MacDonald (Merida), Emma Thompson (Queen Elinor), and Billy Connolly (King Fergus). The triplets have some fantastic moments, too, and their unusual dilemma actually helps to advance the plot instead of taking us off on a wild tangent.
This movie is not a comedy. Tonally, it’s similar to Disney’s Sleeping Beauty. While there are some amusing moments, at heart, Brave is a beautiful, dark, old-school fairy tale. It also had enough action to keep my nine-year-old stepson thoroughly engaged, even though
the protagonist is conspicuously female.
It also has an unusually strong, thought-provoking message. Merida keeps blaming the witch, but deep down, she knows it’s not the witch who’s to blame. The potential for real evil lies not beyond human nature but firmly within it. That’s tough stuff.
Why You Might Not:
Whoever says this is Pixar’s weakest feature clearly has not seen Cars 2 (and even that has its charms, though good pacing is not among them).
The moment the end credits rolled, my mom announced that she didn’t think Brave was very good for a Pixar film, and I know she’s not alone in that opinion.
Personally, I don’t think it’s fair to judge a movie on terms other than its own. Brave is like a feature length, animated picture book. It’s not trying to be epic or edgy or anything like some of Pixar’s more critically acclaimed features, say Wall-E, The Incredibles, Up. It does tell a pretty simple story, but simple things can be profound. Maybe Brave isn’t an epic masterpiece, but it’s a very solid piece of small storytelling. If you’re expecting a comedy or an epic, though, you might well be disappointed. This is a children’s fairy tale. Taken on its own terms, it has a lot to offer, but some adults may not be interested.
9.) Prometheus (A-/B+)
Why I Liked It:
Prometheus asks a lot of questions. Strangely, the questions that seem to matter to the filmmakers aren’t the same ones being asked by the characters. Michael Fassbender’s sublimely creepy android David dominates the film, and his intellectual curiosity becomes contagious.
The performance is so powerful, the character so captivating, that even if the others had remained in cryosleep, I would have kept watching. Noomi Repace is also fantastic, particularly in the pulse pounding operation scene that delivers such cerebral and visceral thrills (though, plot wise, frustratingly fails to go anywhere logical).
Ridley Scott delivers an intriguing film that asks profound questions and features ambitious cinematography, well drawn scenes, perfect pacing, visceral thrills, an oddly sinister (for one so amoral) android, and a strong female protagonist in the stamp of Ellen Ripley. (Elizabeth Shaw is way more emotional, of course, but that’s done for a reason.) As I said in my review, “The early scenes with David pair with the final conversation in the movie to make an interesting point, one that seems to be the central concern of the director.”
More summer blockbusters should be made with this much care.
Why You Might Not:
When considering what Prometheus fails to deliver, you could quite reasonably call my grade excessively generous. Hating this movie seems like a perfectly rational response. From a strictly narrative point of view, Prometheus doesn’t seem to play by its own rules. If you’re invested in the same questions the characters are, you’re not going to get the answers you’re expecting or, for that matter, any kind of satisfying closure. Prometheus needs a sequel, so I hope Scott has one planned.
Also, I’m a bit of a Prometheus apologist, but even I think that the behavior of the scientists once they land on the moon is beyond ridiculous. These people are educated, trained, and experienced? I think a bunch of Girl Scouts would have handled the situation better. Pragmatism, procedure, even plain ol’ common sense are nowhere to be found among the human crew of the Prometheus.
For me, the film’s flashes of brilliance overwhelm its weak spots, but others would be perfectly justified in feeling differently. Oh! And Guy Pearce’s makeup is hideous! Hideous!
10.) Hope Springs (A-/B+)
Why I Liked It:
I’ve never seen another movie quite like Hope Springs. It is about the relationship between two people—sixty-something, unhappily married couple Kay and Arnold—and that is it. All supporting characters are static and unobtrusive, even Dr. Feld, the couple’s well-meaning marriage counselor played by Steve Carell.
Anyone who has had a long-term relationship should be able to relate to the movie which is without question for adults only. (Kids won’t get the point but might understand the innuendo.) Even with such a narrow focus, Hope Springs manages to be consistently engaging, funny, and touching. The situation never seems contrived. The relationship under scrutiny feels incredibly real.
Much of the film’s success comes from the charisma of its two leads. Meryl Streep makes any movie watchable, and this is probably the best performance I’ve ever seen from Tommy Lee Jones. Playing Arnold demands more of Jones than most of his roles, and he definitely delivers. Probably the best part of the movie comes in the aftermath of the slight disaster in the movie theater. It takes talent and discipline from all involved to produce an emotional moment that seems that natural. For me, in that moment, Kay and Arnold finally made sense as a couple, and the movie seemed truly great.
Why You Might Not:
Despite the fact that the last act feels slow, Hope Springs probably deserves a higher grade because it never seriously stumbles in execution. Streep and Jones are fantastic, and Carell is surprisingly unobtrusive. But the movie isn’t much fun to watch. Don’t get me wrong. There are plenty of laughs, but they’re always uncomfortable and at the expense of characters who quickly win our sympathy (Kay more quickly, but Arnold more totally).
Normally, I get excited to show my parents good movies, and my parents (about the same age as Kay and Arnold) should easily relate to Hope Springs. But that’s just the problem. Who wants to watch characters they identify with having a painful (and common) crisis for an hour and a half? There is no relief in this movie, just tension, one hundred minutes of tension. On the plus side, it’s very real. Then again, maybe it’s a little too real. The longer I dwell on this, the more I want to lower the movie’s grade, which isn’t fair because it’s actually a great film, one of the most realistic and subtle relationship dramas I’ve seen in recent years.
11.) The Amazing Spiderman (B+)
Why I Liked It:
With no disrespect to Sam Raimi’s Spiderman trilogy, The Amazing Spiderman does a great job of reintroducing the character to a new generation of movie goers. (Generations come and go so quickly, these days.) To my shock, I thought Andrew Garfield captured the character of Peter Parker much better than Toby Maguire. Garfield’s Peter seems confident and cool even before he suits up and becomes amazing. And he has fantastic chemistry with Emma Stone’s plucky, sarcastic Gwen Stacy, making the scenes the two share truly captivating and enjoyable. In fact, the scenes with Peter and Gwen at school are so entertaining in their own right that the whole super powers/super villain thing doesn’t seem terribly pressing.
The Amazing Spiderman also features a powerful score by James Horner and wonderful fight choreography that makes us appreciate Spidey’s nimble moves and unique skillset.
What You Might Not:
Some of the movie’s weaknesses are not really its fault. Rebooting the franchise this soon
means that most of the audience is abundantly familiar with Spiderman’s origin story. This time around, some aspects of Peter’s initial transformation are different, but the stuff that’s the same feels so stale and rehashed. Plus, as annoying as it was to have old Uncle Ben beat us over the head with, “With great power comes great responsibility,” it really feels like new Uncle Ben rambles a lot, conspicuously trying to talk his way around those magic words.
After a while, the movie starts to feel long. Also, while Rhys Ifans makes a perfectly compelling Dr. Kurt Connors, the Lizard is not the world’s most exciting villain. A lot of the energy that jumps off the screen as Peter discovers his new powers and finds his dynamic with Gwen vanishes once Spiderman gets bogged down trying to track and trap his scaly nemesis. The movie also gets much darker once the Lizard becomes a major player. I realize that comic book movies are often dark, but I honestly preferred the playful vibe present earlier in the movie. Parents of young viewers might dismay that while the first half of the movie delights all ages, once the Lizard shows up, the movie becomes too dark
and frightening for some children.
12.) Premium Rush (B+)
Why I Liked It:
Premium Rush is the best chase movie about bike messengers in New York City that I’ve ever seen. Even though the plot is pretty formulaic, the elements plugged into the formula are so unique that the movie deserves to find an audience. Besides being a talented actor, Joseph Gordon-Levitt obviously has a gift for picking solid scripts. And Michael Shannon dials up the intensity as the almost too creepy to believe antagonist of the piece.
Commanding performances, high stakes, perfect pacing, visceral thrills, and well-choreographed chase scenes combine to make Premium Rush a better-than-average popcorn flick that certainly kept me on the edge of my seat.
Why You Might Not:
If you’re not looking for a chase movie about bike messengers in New York City featuring Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Michael Shannon as its biggest (and, in fact, only) stars, then Premium Rush is not the film for you.
The movie also seems to suggest that the law has totally failed and does not truly protect average citizens. If you don’t like to be told that what is moral is something other than what is legal, then you’re not going to like this. The movie also (commendably) features
characters of a wide variety of ethnic backgrounds all working together without even taking notice of their differences, but—and this is kind of a big but—everyone of Chinese heritage seems to be tied to a well-established, law-unto-itself crime ring headquartered in Chinatown. Interestingly, though, this alternate system of governance is the only one that actually works. So I’m not sure what’s worse—possibly accidentally suggesting that all Chinese residents of New York respect only their own alternative law, or flat out saying that all other residents of New York (wisely) respect no law at all.
But the bike chases are good, though.