I'd better write about last weekend's movies before I go see this weekend's!
Oops. Well, better late...
#69: Elysium - Set in the year 2154, where the very wealthy live on a man-made space station while the rest of the population resides on a ruined Earth, a man takes on a mission that could bring equality to the polarized worlds. [imdb]
I enjoyed this movie, but I wanted so much more from it. I loved District 9, so the director plus my celebrity husband Matt Damon (plus Jodie Foster, plus Sharlto Copley) in an original sci-fi epic have had me eager since the movie's announcement. The end result was an entertaining ride with some interesting world-building and characters, but it doesn't live up to its potential.
The good things: The concept of a divided elite/everyone else world isn't unique, but it's realized quite well. Earth has become a giant slum that as far as we can tell is mostly run by robots as authority figures. The movie doesn't venture into robot autonomy as a plotline (that would have been...a distraction) but the interaction between humans and them is interesting. IMatt Damon's Max works at a robot-construction facility, and yet it's the robots who hassle him in line for the bus as cops and penalize him for being a smart-ass as his parole officer. In fact, ultimately, he has to become a cyborg himself to make progress. Nobody questions that they're in charge or interacts with them differently from any human in that role.
I do so enjoy robots.
The pacing was really strong, too (one of my friends cited this as a problem, but she hated the whole thing and the rest of us found that comment off base); no dead time, and no weird side-plots. I appreciated that the focus stayed on keeping alive, rather than wandering into romance land. In this respect, it succeeded much more than Pacific Rim did. It was subtle.
Also, Blomkamp made a clear and successful effort to show that the future will be more brown than white. The leadership on Elysium was multiethnic. Jodie Foster was even French, or so we were supposed to think; her accent was kind of whack. Of course, in the most obvious hitting of the nail on the head story, Earth is almost all non-white. It's implied that Spanish is the primary language and the smartest person in the movie, the one who does the brain while Max provides the muscle and the desperation, is Latino. (Spider was great, I'm so glad he was a big player).
Foster and Copley's villains were great...until they weren't. They started out very compelling and both actors did very well with the roles they were given to play, but unfortunately, they weren't given too much. SPOILER TIME: And their defeat was backward. Foster was enemy #1 and her ending was a real let-down. Copley just got crazier with time, instead of more complex. Le sigh.
Elysium mostly suffers by comparison to District 9 which is too bad, since there's nothing especially wrong about it, just...not enough. It's entertaining but not a classic.
#70: Fruitvale Station - The purportedly true story of Oscar Grant III, a 22-year-old Bay Area resident, who crosses paths with friends, enemies, family, and strangers on the last day of 2008. [imdb]
You should see this movie. You should see it in theatres or rent it, and bring a few tissues with you.
This is the reimagined version of the last day of a young man's life. It's a movie where everyone knows the ending, and at first (because they show the actual footage straight away), you're kind of on edge with anticipation, but you relax into getting to know the man and his family, his demons and his pride. You don't and can't forget what's coming, but you can laugh where it's funny and cheer when there's success.
Grant is no hero, and Michael B. Jordan, who plays him, does a brilliant job of making this clear. It's a phenomenal performance that should not be missed. Octavia Spencer and Melonie Diaz are also excellent, but Jordan is just beyond.
Director Ryan Coogler takes the story all the way through the shooting and aftermath, too, which I was glad for but also is where everything became tears. The movie succeeds so well because it's honest and direct, without feeling manipulative; the director's hand turns us towards seeing into the people first. The bigger issues emerge with little help.
It's a fine, fine work that shows the power of film as a storytelling art.
#69: Elysium - Set in the year 2154, where the very wealthy live on a man-made space station while the rest of the population resides on a ruined Earth, a man takes on a mission that could bring equality to the polarized worlds. [imdb]
I enjoyed this movie, but I wanted so much more from it. I loved District 9, so the director plus my celebrity husband Matt Damon (plus Jodie Foster, plus Sharlto Copley) in an original sci-fi epic have had me eager since the movie's announcement. The end result was an entertaining ride with some interesting world-building and characters, but it doesn't live up to its potential.
The good things: The concept of a divided elite/everyone else world isn't unique, but it's realized quite well. Earth has become a giant slum that as far as we can tell is mostly run by robots as authority figures. The movie doesn't venture into robot autonomy as a plotline (that would have been...a distraction) but the interaction between humans and them is interesting. IMatt Damon's Max works at a robot-construction facility, and yet it's the robots who hassle him in line for the bus as cops and penalize him for being a smart-ass as his parole officer. In fact, ultimately, he has to become a cyborg himself to make progress. Nobody questions that they're in charge or interacts with them differently from any human in that role.
I do so enjoy robots.
The pacing was really strong, too (one of my friends cited this as a problem, but she hated the whole thing and the rest of us found that comment off base); no dead time, and no weird side-plots. I appreciated that the focus stayed on keeping alive, rather than wandering into romance land. In this respect, it succeeded much more than Pacific Rim did. It was subtle.
Also, Blomkamp made a clear and successful effort to show that the future will be more brown than white. The leadership on Elysium was multiethnic. Jodie Foster was even French, or so we were supposed to think; her accent was kind of whack. Of course, in the most obvious hitting of the nail on the head story, Earth is almost all non-white. It's implied that Spanish is the primary language and the smartest person in the movie, the one who does the brain while Max provides the muscle and the desperation, is Latino. (Spider was great, I'm so glad he was a big player).
Foster and Copley's villains were great...until they weren't. They started out very compelling and both actors did very well with the roles they were given to play, but unfortunately, they weren't given too much. SPOILER TIME: And their defeat was backward. Foster was enemy #1 and her ending was a real let-down. Copley just got crazier with time, instead of more complex. Le sigh.
Elysium mostly suffers by comparison to District 9 which is too bad, since there's nothing especially wrong about it, just...not enough. It's entertaining but not a classic.
#70: Fruitvale Station - The purportedly true story of Oscar Grant III, a 22-year-old Bay Area resident, who crosses paths with friends, enemies, family, and strangers on the last day of 2008. [imdb]
You should see this movie. You should see it in theatres or rent it, and bring a few tissues with you.
This is the reimagined version of the last day of a young man's life. It's a movie where everyone knows the ending, and at first (because they show the actual footage straight away), you're kind of on edge with anticipation, but you relax into getting to know the man and his family, his demons and his pride. You don't and can't forget what's coming, but you can laugh where it's funny and cheer when there's success.
Grant is no hero, and Michael B. Jordan, who plays him, does a brilliant job of making this clear. It's a phenomenal performance that should not be missed. Octavia Spencer and Melonie Diaz are also excellent, but Jordan is just beyond.
Director Ryan Coogler takes the story all the way through the shooting and aftermath, too, which I was glad for but also is where everything became tears. The movie succeeds so well because it's honest and direct, without feeling manipulative; the director's hand turns us towards seeing into the people first. The bigger issues emerge with little help.
It's a fine, fine work that shows the power of film as a storytelling art.