Southpaw

Southpaw, the latest film from acclaimed director Antoine Fuqua is a blisteringly emotional film with boxing in it. I say that because the story of Southpaw could have been drafted around any sport or no sport at all, it's that compelling. Sadly the filmmakers and writers could have done so much more than what they brought to the screen that I need to break down my rating. Based just on the story I have to give Southpaw a disappointing two buckets of Killer Korn. Based on the boxing and the technical aspects of Southpaw, I give it three.











As an Antoine Fuqua fan since the days of Training Day I was really looking forward to seeing this movie. And when I found out the man behind Sons of Anarchy and The Shield, Kurt Sutter was the writer my excitement doubled. I figured those two men alone would be just as good together as the partnership of David Fincher and Aaron Sorkin in my mind. Sadly if Fuqua and Sutter plan on working together again, they need to do a far better job of telling a story. Southpaw opened the doors to so many potentially amazing stories and conversations only to slam those doors closed and ignore them entirely. Either those stories were lost in the editing room or it was lazy filmmaking. Those are the only two reasons I can come up with as to why this movie fell the fuck apart the way it did. There were multiple plot devices and out of all those introduced, only one had closure. I also don't understand why the movie was called Southpaw when that aspect of boxing played a very minuscule role in the film. I really wanted to like this fucking film way more than I did but it failed to educate the fine intricacies of boxing to the average film goer who is a casual boxing fan. In my mind missing  a teachable moment is criminal.

Thankfully the performances in Southpaw overcame a crumbling story in completely wonderful ways. Jake Gyllenhaal was scintillating in this movie. He may have been overlooked for some award in the past but I firmly doubt that will happen after seeing his portrayal of boxer Billy Hope. Rachel McAdams plays Maureen Hope, Billy's wife and Oona Laurence plays their daughter Leila. After losing his wife to a shooting accident due to his temper, Billy loses his license to box by assaulting a ref in his next fight and then loses his daughter to child services and his house. He then seeks out the trainer of the one fighter Hope felt he lost to for help, Forrest Whitaker's Tick Wills. The two men start off on unsure footing and almost come to blows until Billy humbles himself. While Billy goes through the motions of getting his life together in order to get his daughter back his biggest rival Miguel Escobar, played by Miguel Gomez is now managed by Billy's one time manager Jordan Mains played with the appropriate amount of sleaze by Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson and being trained by Billy's one time trainer Eli Frost, played by Jose Caraballo. Every performance was well executed and sharp which is a testament to Fuqua's talent as a director.

Southpaw's glaring flaws in the storyline were also slightly overshadowed by the technical prowess the film displayed. HBO's involvement in the film with the inclusion of Jim Lampley and Roy Jones Jr. lent a real air of authenticity. The parts of the film when fighting occurs is breathtaking. It's some of the best camera work done in the ring since Michael Mann's amazing Ali. You are put right in the middle of the fighting and many of the punches came directly at the camera. Oscar award winning cinematographer Mauro Fiore captured the true brutality of the sweet science in ways rarely seen on the big screen. It was truly sublime work. One of the last scores by James Horner was scarce and ultimately forgettable but to his defense Southpaw is a movie that doesn't really need a score. The intensity is wound so tight in the movie that music isn't needed. I wish Southpaw was a better written movie but it's an exceptionally well crafted one. If you're a boxing fan, see this movie because you'll enjoy it. If you're hoping for a good story, skip it because it will disappoint and I'll see you that the theater.     

Amy

Amy, the latest film from renown documentarian Asif Kapadia is a heartbreaking tale of the up and down life of Amy Winehouse. A transcendent artist who many in the music industry viewed as an old soul thanks to her look and sound. If you are a fan of hers then you need to see this movie ASAP. If you aren't this movie will undoubtedly make you curious about her music if not a fan of hers and for that I give Amy four buckets of Killer Korn.












I originally thought this review would be brief since Amy is a documentary but the more I thought about it the more I realized there was a lot to talk about. Asif compiled an incredible cache of clips and pics of Amy Winehouse's life, scored some incredible interviews with those that knew her growing up and those that knew her from within the industry. They all echo the same sentiment, that Amy was a real down to earth young lady with an enormous heart and a prodigious talent. Listening to her sing for her record deal in the movie definitely puts that front and center. She was a singer/songwriter who hated pop music and those artists that didn't write their own songs. She also had no desire to be famous, but with a talent like hers fame was bound to happen.

A gardener protects their flowers from the elements and insects until they feel the time is right to let them flourish, yet the gardener remains ever vigilant over them. In Amy you will hear from the gardener, the man that "discovered" her, Nick Shymansky, and you'll see how he went from staying by Amy's side in the beginning to seemingly vanish when things went downhill for her. You'll discover how her father, Mitch Winehouse, abandoned Amy and her mother when Amy was just nine years old only to come back into the picture when she struck it rich. You'll see how he exploited her, and refused to tell her the truth in order to keep the money train on its tracks. And when you get insight into her on again off again relationship and marriage/divorce to Blake Fielder-Civil your skin will absolutely crawl, and then you'll realize that Amy never really stood a chance and she was doomed from the start.

She was a young talent, seeking structure and love yet receiving none of that and forced to find her way on her own. She was a flower cut far too early from the stem by her gardeners and put on display for all the world to see before she ever got the chance to properly bloom. They had no idea how to help this rare and special flower and because of that she withered away and met her fateful end. Asif doesn't get overly maudlin with Amy's death, and you find yourself appreciative of the light touch. There are voices missing from this film. Significant chapters of rumored romances and dalliances are disappointingly omitted, so the film isn't perfect, but it is a perfect look at the artist herself. For those of us who weren't on board the Winehouse train when it initially left the station, Amy allows us to marvel at how amazing beautiful and tragic the ride was, and the poignant score provided by Antonio Pinto highlighted that. I strongly recommend Amy if you are a fan or a music lover, either way you will not be disappointed because Amy is worth the price of admission. I'll see you at the theater.

Inside Out

Inside Out, the latest film from writer/director Pete Doctor and directer Ronald Del Carmen is an absolutely fantastic movie which honestly surprised me. Not only is it funny but it possesses a large heart with a relatable message at it's core. Is it a perfect movie? Absolutely not but it is a movie I really think everyone should check out and because of that I give Inside Out four buckets of Killer Korn.












I really wasn't going to see this Inside Out but I'm glad I did and you will be too if you decide to check it out. Now this review is going to be short because animated movies don't really require certain insights into them that live action movies do, so be warned. Inside Out is the charming story of a young girl named Riley who is voiced by relative newcomer Kaitlyn Dias. We meet Riley at birth and that's when we're also introduced to Joy, voiced by Amy Poehler. Joy is Riley's key emotional cog and she commands the emotional control panel. Joy is under the impression that it's just going to be the two of them forever. That idea crashes and burns when Anger, voiced by legendary comedian Lewis Black, Disgust, voiced by Mindy Kaling, Sadness, voiced by Phyllis Smith, and Fear, voiced by Bill Hader all show up to pitch in with Joy to make Riley as emotionally well rounded as possible. They all get thrown for a loop however when Riley's father, voiced by Kyle MacLachlan and her mother, voiced by Diane Lane move the three of them from Minnesota to San Francisco.

Joy does her best to ensure that Riley is upbeat and appears supportive of the move while Fear is petrified of leaving the surroundings they have all grown very comfortable with. Anger is outraged but is held in check as is Sadness who can't seem to stop touching Riley's memories turning them sad, much to the chagrin of Joy. It's not until Sadness touches one of Riley's core memories does Inside Out take off. In an effort to try and save the core memories, Joy and Sadness get trapped in Riley's labyrinth of her mind amidst all of her memories. The race back to headquarters is both a hilarious and sad journey fraught with hijinks and peril. In my opinion Inside Out is one of the best films of the year, animated or live action (I still think Mad Max: Fury Road is THE best so far). I would highly recommend seeing it even if you don't have any children, they won't get it anyway. Inside Out is an adult film just animated and centered around a twelve year old girl. Because of that it is worth the price of admission. I'll see you at the theater.

Terminator: Genisys

Terminator: Genisys, the latest film from director Alan Taylor is a loud, brash, and entertaining REMAKE (NOT a sequel) of a movie. I'm not going to lie, the story makes an incredible mess of time lines but if you can ignore that then you just may enjoy this lengthy popcorn movie. Unfortunately I have a hard time ignoring that one major plot device and because of that I am giving Terminator: Genisys two and a half buckets of buttery Killer Korn.











I have to admit that when I heard Alan Taylor was directing the latest Terminator movie I was not excited. The reason for my lackluster response to that news was due in large part to his previous offering, Thor: The Dark World. It was a major disappointment to me since I loved the first Thor film directed by Kenneth Branagh. Now I loved Alan's work on Game of Thrones but his feature film work has been somewhat underwhelming. So I went into Terminator: Genisys with my fingers crossed and with the understanding that this movie was NOT a sequel. Going in with the thought of sequel would cause any true Terminator fans to potentially hate this film. So if you are on the fence about seeing this movie and you were waiting for my blog to yay or nay the idea, understand that if you do see it know that this movie is NOT a sequel, it is a REMAKE! That means it turns the original Terminator completely on it's head (while making James Cameron's head explode at the same time).

Arnold Schwarzenegger stars as Sarah Conner's personal Terminator whom she affectionately refers to as Pops. Sarah Conner is played by Khaleesi herself, Emilia Clarke, John Conner is played by Jason Clarke (no relation), and Kyle Reese is played by the horrid Jai Courtney. Watching Jai in this movie is just painful at times and you hope the guy gets some acting classes soon. When you get outacted by Arnold then you know you have some serious work to do but I digress. I have to give it to Alan this time around though, this film is an entertaining take on the Terminator lore. It wasn't his fault he was saddled with a story that made absolutely no sense. That blame lies at the feet of Laeta Kalogridis and Patrick Lussier. These two must have been tripping on some really ancient shrooms when they put this thing to paper because again it makes absolutely NO sense. There's a touch of Terminator: The Sarah Conner Chronicles here thanks to all the Terminators in this movie and the attempts at stopping judgement day before it happens. Where they get it wrong is the Terminator technology. There's already a liquid metal Terminator back in 1984 when Skynet sends back the T-800 model to kill Sarah Conner. How that happens is never explained and I'm guessing they just want you the viewer to go along with it. Where they also mess up is what they did with the John Conner character. None of that made ANY sense either but whatever, right?

As I said, Terminator: Genisys is loud and brash and it tries to give you the gravitas of the original Terminator and the charm and over the top action of it's sequel but it misses both by just a hair. Arnold is great in Genisys but sadly no one else is except J.K. Simmons who plays officer O'Brien. They bring the charm to an otherwise droll film but it's not enough. There's little to no chemistry between Emilia and Jai and without that, that's the ballgame. However, on the shits and giggles scale this $155 million dollar movie is a solid eight. The chases, the explosions, the fights, and the shootouts never seem to stop. Cinematographer Kramer Morgenthau did a fantastic job capturing all the action and explosions, but the fights between Terminators was a tad hard to follow but they were interesting. I had an issue with the Lorne Balfe's score. I am a big fan of Lorne's but he failed to deliver a iconic theme like Brad Fidel did for Cameron's original. Maybe he can rectify that in the sequel. If you're looking for an entertaining movie then check out Terminator: Genisys, but if you're looking for an intelligent, cohesive storyline then sit this one out and I'll see you at the theater.