Movie review: "The Post"

dir. by Steven Spielberg
written by Liz Hannah and Josh Singer
Uniting Steven Speilberg with two of Hollywood's finest actors and a timely script, The Post seems like a surefire recipe for awards success. It's a recipe which on the surface seems foolproof: a major event from American history, milked for all of its contemporary relevance, perfectly poised for great actors to do their thing, all wrapped up with direction from one of the greatest filmmakers currently working. While such a perfect formula may bring the accusation of Oscar bait, that doesn't necessarily mean the film isn't worthwhile: that a premise is suspiciously timely doesn't make it less powerful, and that the performances are so heavily emphasized doesn't diminish their excellence.

But there's only so much that great actors and a great director can do, and with The Post, they're given the tough job of elevating a script which consists largely of a constant stream of exposition, with plot detail after plot detail explained to the audience and personal stakes which strain against that plot for even the faintest hint of emotional resonance. The film's politics are certainly admirable, and Spielberg's mastery of tone and tension elevates the whole affair, but it's only in the all-too-rare moments where the film shuts up for a moment that it finally gains the tension which this story so desperately needs.

Movie review: "Star Wars: The Last Jedi"

THROND'S CHOICE
dir. and written by Rian Johnson
Star Wars has been successful for 40 years. It's a testament to the strength of this franchise that it's never fallen from the popular consciousness, but it's also a testament to the sheer force of marketing which has always surrounded these films. Any franchise as successful as this risks falling victim to complacency, delivering exactly what its fans expect for fear of alienating them, and while The Force Awakens gloriously tip-toed the line between paying tribute to all that came before it while still providing a new, exciting future for this universe, its deviations from series formula were related to theme and character, whereas its plot structure remained similar to the the original film from 1977, albeit purposefully so.

The Last Jedi matches its predecessor for thematic impact, fascinating characters, and astonishing action scenes, but it adds an almost total refusal to give in to fan expectations, and this is what makes it a more challenging and ultimately superior movie. There's nothing predictable about this latest Star Wars, which renders it ultimately more mysterious than this franchise has been in ages, and it benefits further from the considerable skill of director Rian Johnson, who is among the greatest visual stylists to ever operate on this universe. It's a long, often grim, at times even surprisingly talky, and yet it's also relentlessly gripping, punctured by strong comedic beats and some of the greatest action scenes the series has ever seen. Despite all of its idiosyncrasy, this is unmistakably Star Wars at its very finest.

Movie review: "The Disaster Artist"

dir. by James Franco
written by Scott Neustadter, Michael H. Weber

Quick rundown for those not in the know: In 2003, an enigmatic weirdo named Tommy Wiseau released his directorial debut, a strange, inept drama titled The Room, in which an obvious director surrogate - of course played by Wiseau himself - has his life fall apart as everyone he knows "betrays" him. The film, which played in an extremely limited run, was soon the target of mockery, and gained a sizable cult following over the years in large part due to internet popularity and ironic midnight screenings. Ten years later, actor Greg Sestero, who played a key role in Wiseau's film, collaborated with a journalist on a memoir regarding the production of the film, featuring numerous stranger-than-fiction details, and now we're here, with a film adaptation.

When The Disaster Artist works best, it's emphasizing Wiseau's secretive past and the surrealism of the filming process, and much of its humour comes from the astonishing strangeness of its real story. It's filled with great performances and some fairly solid comedic timing, and particularly in its energetic second half, the film is genuinely riveting. But Franco and his writers have no perspective on Wiseau, and despite emphasizing many of the dark edges in this real-world story, the film settles on an upbeat, self-congratulatory tone which at once feels like a mismatch for the material and like bland self-congratulation. The Disaster Artist, as entertaining as it can be, only occasionally recognizes the real value in this story, and its ultimate positivity feels undeserved.

Movie review: "Lady Bird"

THROND'S CHOICE
dir. and written by Greta Gerwig
Teenagers can be terrible. Last year's The Edge of Seventeen understood that, and mined it for a lot of pathos and humour, presenting a character who's just beginning to see the world outside of her own mind. Greta Gerwig's directorial debut, Lady Bird, plays on many of the same themes, but imbues them with even more detail and specificity, with a more ambitious lead character and a much wider thematic range. It's just as funny, and boasts both more pathos and more irresolution, and by a wide margin it manages to eclipse last year's already wonderful entry in the genre.

But that's not to say that this is an iteration on already-explored themes. Here, Gerwig shows potential to be just as accomplished a writer and director as she is an actress, with a nuanced script which boasts loads of specificity, strongly developed characters, and powerful insight into the relationships between parents and their children. Specificity has a way of revealing universals, and as much as Lady Bird works simply as an uproarious teen comedy, the way it ends isn't with a big laugh but with one final note of soulful contemplation. This is a wonderful movie.

Movie review: "The Florida Project"

THROND'S CHOICE

dir. by Sean Baker

written by Sean Baker and Chris Bergoch

A couple years ago, Sean Baker took the festival circuit by storm with his thrilling, energetic comedy-drama Tangerine, a film about a transgender sex worker getting back at her cheating pimp/boyfriend. Tangerine featured a street-level, D.I.Y. vibe: its cast was comprised entirely of non-professional actors, and it was shot on three iPhones. Baker's new film, The Florida Project, has switched to conventional film stock and features Hollywood star Willem Dafoe, but it has the same down-to-earth authenticity which marked his debut, with naturalistic acting from what's still mostly a cast of unknowns, and the same delightful sense of humour.

What's different in The Florida Project, more even than the cameras and Dafoe, is an increase in ambition. Tangerine was largely a comedy, but while the new film is still very funny, it has much more on its mind than just its subtle progressive politics. The Florida Project is an often poetic look at the shadow of decadence, a portrait of people living on the margins and both the forces and cycles which work to keep them there. Its build is a little slower than that of Tangerine, but its cumulative emotional power is much greater, and if the earlier film demonstrated Baker's promise, this new one codifies him as an auteur to keep an eye on. 

Movie review: "My Little Pony: The Movie"

dir. by Jayson Thiessen
writ. by Meghan McCarthy, Rita Hsiao, and Michael Vogel

The appeal of My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic comes from a combination of factors. Aside from its lighthearted tone and cute art style, its characters are surprisingly three-dimensional, and its best episodes can be quite funny as well. This show's cult following didn't come out of nowhere, and much of it comes down to the show's main themes. To me, the most important part of Friendship is Magic's appeal is that so many of its stories revolve around the main characters needing to move past their own insecurities. This show does an excellent job with audience identification, even outside of the target audience, simply because it fleshes out its protagonists and treats them with empathy.

On the other hand, My Little Pony: The Movie is asinine and derivative, and while there's several factors in its overall sloppiness, perhaps the greatest is that it trades the show's stories of insecurity for slapdash adventure cliches, seemingly assembled at random. What little remains of the show's soul is scrambled by the slapdash execution, which is too busy hopping from formula beat to formula beat to sufficiently develop even one of its characters, and it's all brought down by a truly wretched sense of humour. Perhaps it would be difficult to make a My Little Pony movie which really taps into the show's main strengths, but on the other hand, there's no reason it had to be this bad.

(note: spoilers follow)

Game of Thrones episode review: "The Dragon and the Wolf"

Image from IMDb.

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dir. by Jeremy Podeswa

writ. by David Benioff and D.B. Weiss

The new blockbuster iteration of Game of Thrones is maybe the most popular the show has ever been. It's hardly surprising: newbies and longtime viewers alike can revel in all the fan service, and all the superficial crowd-pleasing has made it an easier watch than ever. It fills the fantasy niche and offers a level of spectacle which you rarely get outside of a movie theatre. All the things which have made it less distinctive and less sophisticated also make it more accessible, so of course it's only ever gotten more and more popular. 

And you know what? It's not so bad. A quickened pace, some great special effects, and what's now seven years worth of character development make for a show which is no longer great art, but is still a lot of fun. Season 7's finale, "The Dragon and the Wolf," slows the pace down, and while it still rushes some crucial moments, it also has several of the season's best scenes, and clarifies the show's intriguing thematic conflict. It took me a while to be convinced, but this new Game of Thrones is alright.