Pixar's "Monsters University" is a prequel to "Monsters Inc." Its main protagonists, as in the first film, are two monsters named Mike (voiced by Billy Crystal) and Sullivan (voiced by John Goodman). It tells the story of how the characters in the first film were educated and came of age. It is entertaining but it is not the most original, edgy or surprising animated film that there is.
The film is very knowledgeable about campus life and offers a funny look into the struggles and obstacles that freshman face as they venture into the new, often bewildering territory of post-secondary education. Mike wants to major in Scaring but he finds that his dreams are often barricaded by his own, unscary nature and nonthreatening disposition. Sullivan comes from a family of scary monsters and is one of those lazy, laid-back students who seems to take their talents for granted and thinks that he can coast through university on cruise-control. When the two characters find that their dreams of majoring in Scaring are threatened, they resort to a competition put on by the campus called The Scare Games. In it, there is a series of events which as an assembled fraternity team, they must win enough events to be crowned the scariest monsters on campus. Surely, such a victory would impress the hard-nosed Dean and secure their spot in their major of their choice.
The animation, as always from Pixar, is superb and fun to watch. The characters are empathetically drawn and possess all the emotional expressiveness of real-life humans. There are funny moments - kids and adults will both get a kick out of the film.
The film really starts to take off when the monsters venture into the real-world environment of humans and must use their expertise and teamwork to scare the humans in any way they can. The scenes of the Scare Games are interesting too and the individual events are exciting and interesting.
Overall, this is a good film for kids that their parents can enjoy too. Its only drawback is that it is not all that edgy and inventive. There are better animated features out there but "Monsters University" holds up and is entertaining enough for me to recommend.
Thoughts and insights on film, television, and other aspects of culture by Matthew J. White.
Saturday, July 20, 2013
Wednesday, July 10, 2013
To Catch A Thief (1955, dir. Alfred Hitchcock) ***.5/****
Alfred Hitchcock's 1950's were a legendary time in his filmmaking career. "To Catch A Thief" is identified as one of his lesser, perhaps even his worst of that decade. Upon seeing it on the big screen however, I found myself captivated by the lush, beautiful cinematography of Southern France and a story that is entertaining with good performances and witty dialogue.
Cary Grant plays John Robie, a former bank robber who finds himself implicated and blamed for a new string of robberies even though he isn't responsible. It is his task to escape from being caught and finding out who the real culprit is. A simple straightforward premise but one that is impeccably directed and highly watchable. Grace Kelly plays the love interest Frances Stevens, the daughter of a wealthy family that is the victim of one of the many jewel thieveries throughout the film.
I found myself carried away by the scenery. It almost made the picture for me. The helicopter shots of car chases and the views out of various windows of homes and hotels was absolutely breathtaking in the Vistavision with which the film was shot. On the big screen you really get a sense of the grandeur of the countryside of the Southern France locale. The print I saw in theatre was phenomenal and beautifully restored to a point where you could have sworn it came out last week.
Cary Grant has been in better roles and ditto for Kelly but there performances drove the picture and gave it charm. Some of their passionately-charged dialogue was witty and amusing. A lot of it had double entendres and sexual innuendo that cleverly evaded the censors of the time.
Overall, I liked this Hitchcock film for its visuals and entertaining story and dialogue.
Cary Grant plays John Robie, a former bank robber who finds himself implicated and blamed for a new string of robberies even though he isn't responsible. It is his task to escape from being caught and finding out who the real culprit is. A simple straightforward premise but one that is impeccably directed and highly watchable. Grace Kelly plays the love interest Frances Stevens, the daughter of a wealthy family that is the victim of one of the many jewel thieveries throughout the film.
I found myself carried away by the scenery. It almost made the picture for me. The helicopter shots of car chases and the views out of various windows of homes and hotels was absolutely breathtaking in the Vistavision with which the film was shot. On the big screen you really get a sense of the grandeur of the countryside of the Southern France locale. The print I saw in theatre was phenomenal and beautifully restored to a point where you could have sworn it came out last week.
Cary Grant has been in better roles and ditto for Kelly but there performances drove the picture and gave it charm. Some of their passionately-charged dialogue was witty and amusing. A lot of it had double entendres and sexual innuendo that cleverly evaded the censors of the time.
Overall, I liked this Hitchcock film for its visuals and entertaining story and dialogue.
Drive, He Said (1971, dir. Jack Nicholson) ***/****
"Drive, He Said" is messily directed and incoherent at times but it is a revealing look at campus life in the early 70's and contains good performances. William Tepper plays Hector, a college basketball star who's relationship with his girlfriend Olive (Karen Black) is troubled and complex. His best friend Gabriel (Michael Margotta) is an off-the-wall draft dodger who's activism veers dangerously close to psychosis.
The plot of this film (Jack Nicholson's directorial debut) is meandering and unfocussed. It is difficult to give a good summation of the story because it is so loose and episodic. Although I mentioned that the performances were good (Tepper, Black) that of Margotta borders on the annoying. His final scene will leave you scratching your head and wondering what the point of his inane behaviour is. There are good basketball game sequences and you can tell that Nicholson is a fan of the game because those scene are exciting and well-directed. It is when the action moves away from the court that the lives of the protagonists are revealed to be troubled and convoluted. It is a statement of the times in which the movie was made. Like BBS Studio's previous picture, "Five Easy Pieces", the film speaks to the aimless, uncertain wanderings of the individuals who came of age in the 60's. The transition to the new decade of the 70's was not always smooth and the precarious place that many found themselves in was reflected well in films such as "Drive, He Said".
There is a lot that is admirable about the film. It is a fascinating glimpse into the lives of college-aged individuals in the early 70's. But it is not well-directed and many scenes are bizarre and defy explanation. That is not necessarily a bad thing but I felt this film needed more coherence and verisimilitude.
The plot of this film (Jack Nicholson's directorial debut) is meandering and unfocussed. It is difficult to give a good summation of the story because it is so loose and episodic. Although I mentioned that the performances were good (Tepper, Black) that of Margotta borders on the annoying. His final scene will leave you scratching your head and wondering what the point of his inane behaviour is. There are good basketball game sequences and you can tell that Nicholson is a fan of the game because those scene are exciting and well-directed. It is when the action moves away from the court that the lives of the protagonists are revealed to be troubled and convoluted. It is a statement of the times in which the movie was made. Like BBS Studio's previous picture, "Five Easy Pieces", the film speaks to the aimless, uncertain wanderings of the individuals who came of age in the 60's. The transition to the new decade of the 70's was not always smooth and the precarious place that many found themselves in was reflected well in films such as "Drive, He Said".
There is a lot that is admirable about the film. It is a fascinating glimpse into the lives of college-aged individuals in the early 70's. But it is not well-directed and many scenes are bizarre and defy explanation. That is not necessarily a bad thing but I felt this film needed more coherence and verisimilitude.
Tuesday, July 2, 2013
This Is The End (2013, dir. Evan Goldberg, Seth Rogen) ***.5/****
I predict that few comedies that come out in 2013 or any year will be as weird, funny, and wonderful as Evan Golberg and Seth Rogen's new comedy, "This is the End", a post-modern, apocalyptic, gross-out laugh-fest that is self-reflexive and entertaining as hell. The characters in the film are real movie stars, alumni of Judd Apatow film and television comedies such as "Freaks and Geeks" and "Undeclared". Stars such as Seth Rogen, Jay Baruchel and James Franco all play themselves or caricatures of themselves and the result is riotous and original movie.
The movie starts off with Jay Baruchel arriving in Los Angeles to be greeted by his pal Seth Rogen at an airport. They spend some time together hanging out at Seth's. Pretty soon, they decide to head over to James Franco's house where a party is happening. Here we encounter a whole bunch of people that are part of their Hollywood circle of friends: Jonah Hill, Craig Robinson, Michael Cera and many others. The party rolls along but all of a sudden terrible things start to happen outdoors and we are in the middle of the apocalypse. A lot of people both famous and not-so-famous perish and the rest of the movie deals with how the main protagonists must try to survive in James Franco's house while the end of the world is happening outside.
This movie will offend a lot of people. It contains drug-use, violence, sex and profanity. It also has a lot of gross humour and references that are not for the faint-of-heart. Danny McBride arrives on the scene after a while and he provides even more hilarity and surprises.
The film is original and daring. The use of real actors playing themselves is a fresh approach and provides moments of good comedy. I was somewhat dismayed by the matter-of-fact portrayal of drug-use. Kids should definitely not see this film. Overall, it is hilarious and highly-entertaining.
The movie starts off with Jay Baruchel arriving in Los Angeles to be greeted by his pal Seth Rogen at an airport. They spend some time together hanging out at Seth's. Pretty soon, they decide to head over to James Franco's house where a party is happening. Here we encounter a whole bunch of people that are part of their Hollywood circle of friends: Jonah Hill, Craig Robinson, Michael Cera and many others. The party rolls along but all of a sudden terrible things start to happen outdoors and we are in the middle of the apocalypse. A lot of people both famous and not-so-famous perish and the rest of the movie deals with how the main protagonists must try to survive in James Franco's house while the end of the world is happening outside.
This movie will offend a lot of people. It contains drug-use, violence, sex and profanity. It also has a lot of gross humour and references that are not for the faint-of-heart. Danny McBride arrives on the scene after a while and he provides even more hilarity and surprises.
The film is original and daring. The use of real actors playing themselves is a fresh approach and provides moments of good comedy. I was somewhat dismayed by the matter-of-fact portrayal of drug-use. Kids should definitely not see this film. Overall, it is hilarious and highly-entertaining.
World War Z (2013, dir. Marc Forster) ***/****
"World War Z" is a surprisingly entertaining and at times suspenseful addition to a genre that has become increasingly popular in recent years: the zombie flick. It stars Brad Pitt as Gerry Lane, a retired United Nations Field Agent who just wants to relax and be with his family (wife and two daughters). The movie takes no time to unroll and soon we are thrust into an action-packed thriller when the Lane family, caught in a traffic jam, find out that all hell has broken loose and their hometown is the seeming centre of a zombie apocalypse. The "zombies" are actually people who have been bitten by other carriers of a virus that turns them into blood-thirsty, wild-eyed ghouls. Gerry has to take his family to a safer place and soon he is back from retirement and at the centre of a mission to find the origin of the mysterious disease that is quickly ravaging beings all over the planet.
The film takes the protagonist to every corner of the globe: Korea, Israel, the U.S. and Canada. It is an epic film and there are some highly-entertaining set pieces that are brimming with excitement and action. It is not all that original and ground-breaking however. The zombies that run idea is derivative of films like "28 Days Later". The characters are somewhat unoriginal and uninspired.
The use of CGI is well done and Marc Forster's direction is adequate but this definitely is not the cream of the crop as far as the genre is concerned. I haven't read the graphic novel on which the film is based but I'm betting that the film doesn't do much justice to the source material. But overall, the film is good and worth seeing for the action and suspense.
The film takes the protagonist to every corner of the globe: Korea, Israel, the U.S. and Canada. It is an epic film and there are some highly-entertaining set pieces that are brimming with excitement and action. It is not all that original and ground-breaking however. The zombies that run idea is derivative of films like "28 Days Later". The characters are somewhat unoriginal and uninspired.
The use of CGI is well done and Marc Forster's direction is adequate but this definitely is not the cream of the crop as far as the genre is concerned. I haven't read the graphic novel on which the film is based but I'm betting that the film doesn't do much justice to the source material. But overall, the film is good and worth seeing for the action and suspense.
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