The Equalizer

The Equalizer, the latest movie from director Antoine Fuqua is an enjoyable take on the hit 80's TV show of the same name. This movie is over the top at times and it takes itself far too seriously but the cliche's are light and it was better than I thought it was going to be. Because of those reasons, I am giving The Equalizer  three buckets of Killer Korn.












For those like me that have been waiting years if not decades for The Equalizer to come to the big screen, calm down because this movie may only serve to disappoint you. If you've never seen the show then by all means, check this out. This version of The Equalizer starring Denzel Washington as Robert McCall wants to be an origin story from the hit 80's show of the same name, except on the show Robert McCall was a white Englishman living in a brownstone in Harlem. Whereas Denzel's McCall is living in a one bedroom tenement in Boston. TV's McCall was a wealthy retired spy, Denzel's McCall is working in a giant hardware store. If you can get past those differences then you might enjoy Antoine Fuqua's The Equalizer. Granted it's over the top at times and it beats you over the head with McCall being a solitary man, not to mention it doesn't even begin to tell you why he would put himself on the line to help a hooker he only knows from late night diner conversations over books and pie, but I digress. There are some cliches but they aren't overwhelming surprisingly and the violence is brutal. Much of this movie reminds me of the character Denzel portrayed in a far superior movie, Man On Fire. This movie borrows heavily from Tony Scott's film in regards to McCall's personality and dedication to getting things done.

McCall's nemesis in this movie is Teddy aka Nicholai, played cartoonishly by Marton Csokas. He is the right hand man and hammer of one of the heads of the Russian mob, Vladimir Pushkin played by Vladimir Kulich (I know, I know). Pushkin has his hands in everything from oil and gold, to drugs and women and it's one of these women, a prostitute name Teri aka Alena played by Chloe Grace Moretz who befriends an insomniac McCall at a twenty-four hour diner close to his house. Of course nothing good can come out of this situation but before you can tell yourself that one thing leads to another and McCall is a room full of Russian gangsters. The trailer gives you a sense he survives that encounter but what the movie fails to explain is why McCall felt compelled to go in there and risk his life in the first place. Regardless, Teddy comes to town looking for the one or ones responsible and he comes across McCall on surveillance tapes. The two men play a cat and mouse game for the remainder of the movie that tends to drag on far longer than it should, and the ending was, well remember that over the top comment I made earlier? It applies to the ending.

Denzel does a decent job of bringing Robert McCall to life but honestly he seemed uninspired and his performance isn't something new. The Equalizer has Denzel being Denzel in almost every frame. In essence, he just walked through this movie. The last time Antoine and Denzel worked together they delivered the searing Training Day, which won Denzel his second Oscar (first for Best Actor). This time around there will be no such glory. The score, composed by Harry Gregson-Williams was very reminiscent of his previous works, namely the score he did for The Town, so I was somewhat underwhelmed by the music though it did have it's moments, especially at the end. The cinematography and the look of the film was thanks to Oscar Award winner Mauro Fiore. There were times when the tone was somewhat heavy handed and others when it was perfectly done. All in all I would recommend The Equalizer but only if you've never seen an episode of the original TV series and only if you're fine with Denzel being Denzel, and I'll see you at the theater!

A Walk Among The Tombstones

A Walk Among The Tombstones, the latest film from writer/director Scott Frank was mediocre at best. It could have been a lot better, more scintillating, and far more frightening. It starts off somewhat interesting but then if peters out in the end. I was expecting more than what I got from the story and the directors vision, though I was pleased with some of the performances. It's those performances that inspire me to bestow A Walk Among The Tombstones two buckets of Killer Korn.











I have a friend who is an ENORMOUS fan of author Lawrence Block, the man behind the book this movie was adapted from. I am going to tell her to skip this movie because at best it may sour her on the book and at worse it may piss her off. I am sick and tired of movies that don't answer the obvious questions that arise regarding plot, motivations, and tactics and this movie must be thrown into that pile. A Walk Among The Tombstones blew chance after chance to be a gritty and frightening procedural. It started off that way but it lost its mojo somewhere around the second act and I attribute that to a few factors. First off, if you are going to create monsters, keep them monstrous. Humanizing the monsters takes away their power, it weakens the scare factor by ten, and it puts the good guys on equal footing with the monsters. Liam Neeson's Matt Scudder is an ex-cop who is the good guy which suddenly becomes just as intimidating as the monsters thanks to some dubious directing. You no longer fear if Scudder will survive the eventual confrontation with the malevolent force in the film, you start to wonder how he will.

The story starts off good. Scudder, a recovering alcoholic is approached by a fellow 12 stepper Howie who is played by Eric Nelsen. Howie's brother Kenny, played by Dan Stevens needs a service rendered that only Scudder can provide. Kenny's wife was kidnapped and although the ransom had been paid, his wife was slaughtered anyway. Kenny wants those responsible brought to him and he's willing to pay Scudder handsomely to do that. Researching other missing women Scudder comes across a street wise homeless kid name TJ played by Brian Bradley in just his second movie. He's the charm this movie was devoid of before he showed up on the screen. The two hit it off and develop a solid friendship and should there be a sequel to Tombstones, TJ and Scudder's relationship would be a reason worthy of buying a ticket. In the end though, the monsters aren't that intimidating, they are more frightening in the trailer honestly. One of them actually pulls of a Harry Houdini like escape that is never truly explained.

I was hoping for something powerful and instead what I got was a watered down version of something that could have been an incredibly strong drink, the kind that you feel as it goes down. This was a light beer and that was upsetting. The trailer is more intense than the movie. The music by Carlos Rafael Rivera was moody and dark, too bad it was wasted on a light beer. The cinematography was crisp and clear and had impressive moments thanks to Mihai Malaimare Jr. I would have liked to see what he could have done with a more impactful story that answered some of the questions it created as opposed to leaving the viewer hanging. I recommend skipping A Walk Among The Tombstones and read the book instead. You might enjoy this story more that way and I'll see you at the theater.

   

The Maze Runner

The Maze Runner, the first full length feature film from director Wes Ball is an incoherent, jumbled, empty vessel of a film. I have never read the book and maybe those that have will enjoy this film. For those in the same boat as me will be you may find this movie quite confusing. I'll admit that I found the premise interesting, which is the reason why I saw it but I could have missed it and been just fine. I was originally going to give this movie two and a half buckets of Killer Korn, but the more I thought about it the more I realized it deserved no more than a solitary bucket.









The Maze Runner is the first major film by Wes Ball and it looked like it. The movie initially come across as one that seems worthy of your time, attention, and money but the more you think about it the more you realize just how weak it is. The plot holes are massive and the ending is head scratching at best. Maybe those questions are answered in The Maze Runner Chapter II: The Scorch Trials which is currently in pre-production but I doubt that is a movie I'll be seeing since this one did not impress. The Maze Runner stars Dylan O'Brien as Thomas and the movie opens up with him wildly overacting. He's ascending in an elevator and has no idea where he's going, where he came from, or who he even is. He doesn't even remember his name. All he knows is that he has to get out of the little compound where there lives a collection of other boys all around the same age, and out of the maze. The leader of this Lord of the Flies type situation is Alby, played by Aml Ameen and he breaks down the rules and regulations to Thomas and they are to be obeyed no matter what. Thomas Brodie-Sangster plays Newt and is Alby's second in command. He takes Thomas under his wing. Thomas reveals to Newt that he wants to be a maze runner, a group of boys led by Minho, played by Ki Hong Lee that run the maze during the day to map it and see if there is a way out.

Thomas becomes a maze runner after throwing himself into the maze after dark to help Minho save Alby who runs the maze after a runner get's infected and is expelled from the "island". Thomas survives the night and actually kills a creature known as a "griever", something that is extremely hostile and was believed to be invincible. Thomas' stature grows after that and all seems well but that doesn't last long when the only girl is introduced to the island with a note proclaiming that she will be the last one. That's where the story really starts falling apart. So many things happened that just didn't make sense that made the movie that more unbelievable. Teresa, played by Kaya Scodelario was the only girl amongst a horde of boys in their sexual prime and there was not one instance of sexual tension or frustration. Not one boy flipped out and tried to attack her, which would have made sense if the majority of the boys were gay but even that was never spoken on. It was like everyone was neutered in some way, or the producers just chose to ignore the obvious realities of that situation.

The ending of The Maze Runner made absolutely no sense and while I'm most certain the book answered all the questions the movie created, again though if you've never read the book then you will more than likely be just as lost as I was. This film was soulless and not even remotely interesting. The score by John Paesano far too often sounded like a melange of other scores from other composers, completely devoid of anything original. I would definitely skip The Maze Runner and encourage you to read the series of YA books by author James Dashner. I'm sure you'll have a far more enjoyable time going that route and I'll see you at the theater.