Ghostbusters: Afterlife - Movie Review

Starring Finn Wolfhard, Mckenna Grace, Carrie Coon, Paul Rudd, Bokeem Woodbine, Logan Kim, Celeste O'Connor and Annie Potts.

Written by Gil Kenan & Jason Reitman.

Directed by Jason Reitman.

★★★

Another movie continuing the tradition of being a sequel to the original without really counting the other movies as canon. I can't think of anything it used from Ghostbusters II (and the Paul Feig Ghostbusters was a remake destined to be a forgotten footnote). And while it did feel like its own movie for most of it, it relies a lot on familiarity/nostalgia from the original to hit those emotional chords.

It centers on single mom Callie (Gone Girl's Carrie Coon) and her two teens Trevor (Stranger Things' Finn Wolfhard) and Phoebe (Annabelle Come Home's Mckenna Grace) who've inherited a rickety old farm in Summerville, OK, from Callie's father, whom she never knew. Context clues early say that her father was Egon Spengler, who died officially of a heart attack but there are larger, spookier forces at play. Trevor tries to get in with the local teens while brainiac Phoebe is too intrigued by all the research and gadgets her grandfather left behind. Meanwhile Paul Rudd is a nearby teacher who catches Callie's eye.

It had some late surprises I was expecting and a couple that I was
n't. The star of the show is Grace, who's been bouncing around in some good projects (Gifted, The Haunting of Hill House, young Carol in Captain Marvel, young Tonya in I Tonya) but this feels like a role that can boost her into Dakota Fanning level of Best Teen Actress roles.

Stay through the credits. (But avoid looking at the IMDB cast list before you see the movie so certain things don't get spoiled. Glad I didn't look until after the movie.)

The Harder They Fall - Netflix Review

Starring Jonathan Majors, Zazie Beetz, Idris Elba, Lakeith Stanfield, Delroy Lindo, Regina King, RJ Cyler, Edi Gathegi, Danielle Deadwyler, Deon Cole, and Damon Wayans Jr.

Written by Jeymes Samuel & Boaz Yakin.

Directed by Jeymes Samuel.

★★★

This stylized Sam Raimi-esque gun-totin' Western is cooler when you realize that most of these characters were real people. Sure, liberties have been taken to allow certain body counts to happen in a certain order, but for the most part, yeah, let's have some fun with real people.

Here we get Jonathan Majors (Loki) as Nat Love, an outlaw in his own right, but he's seeking revenge against someone badder - Rufus Buck (Idris Elba) , the man who killed his parents right in front of him. Turns out Buck has a gang that's sprung him from prison, so this is Nat's chance to find him and kill him himself.

Tons of other actors show up to have some shoot-em-fun. Never thought I'd want to see Zazie Beetz (Deadpool) and Regina King (Watchmen) dressed as cowgirls fighting to the death, but we get that here and that's what makes cinema fun, right? Lakeith Stanfield (Judas & the Black Messiah) is an actor I'll never tire of seeing. Delory Lindo (Da 5 Bloods) is that welcome old man who has one last gunfight in him. And so on.

I'm not really sure how Jeymes Samuel got to get this movie made - maybe there was some Jay-Z money behind it (he directed Jay-Z: Legacy) but his directorial debut was also a wild Western with an all-Black cast called They Die at Dawn, which I now want to hunt down.

This movie's a hoot.

The French Dispatch - Movie Review

Starring Benecio Del Toro, Adrien Brody, Tilda Swinton, Lea Seydoux, Bill Murray, Frances McDormand, Timothee Chalamet, Jeffrey Wright, Liev Schreiber, Elisabeth Moss, Fisher Stevens, Owen Wilson, Jason Schwartzman, Christoph Waltz, Willem Dafoe, Saoirse Ronan, Edward Norton, Lois Smith, Henry Winkler, Cecile de France, Steve Park and Mathieu Amalric.

Written by Wes Anderson, Roman Coppola, Hugo Guinness & Jason Schwartzman.

Directed by Wes Anderson.

★★½ 

There are plenty of actors I didn't even list above; the movie is bursting with recognizable faces. This ode to long-form journalism of a certain time is lovingly crafted by Wes Anderson, he of the very distinct flavor of films like Rushmore, The Royal Tenenbaums, Moonrise Kingdom and Isle of Dogs. While there is plenty to admire here and be entertained by, it's one of his most self-indulgent efforts to date, and I doubt it'll convert any newcomers not already on board with his sensibilities.

The movie is basically three stories attached with the narrative device of a magazine similar to The New Yorker. The French Dispatch is edited by Arthur Howitzer Jr (Bill Murray), and he has dedication to his writers. We learn at the beginning that he has died, and in his will, he wishes publication of the magazine to cease, so in this final issue, we get the last articles by JKL Berensen (Tilda Swinton), Lucinda Krementz (Frances McDormand), and Roebuck Wright (Jeffrey Wright).

The first story is the strongest of the three, about a convicted murderer (Benecio Del Toro) who happens to be a genius painter. The second revolves around a French student rebellion led by Timothee Chalamet, and the third is about the kidnapping of the son of the Commissaire (Mathieu Amalric). Toward the end of the second story, I was ready for it to be over, and toward the end of the third, I felt the same way. And with so many good actors, I have to wonder why they were willing to sign on when they only had one or two lines?

I'm trying to think of anthology movies I liked, and they tend to be horror (Trick R Treat) or from different voices (New York Stories). This is one I'm glad I saw but unlike the majority of Wes's films, I have no desire to see it again. In fact, the couple next to us said it was the worst movie they'd ever seen. But if Benecio Del Toro's story was on TV, I'd watch for a few minutes.

Eternals - Movie Review

Starring Gemma Chan, Richard Madden, Angelina Jolie, Kit Harington, Kumail Nanjiani, Salma Hayek, Brian Tyree Henry, Barry Keoghan, Lia McHugh, Lauren Ridloff, Don Lee and Harish Patel.

Written by Chloe Zhao, Patrick Burleigh, Ryan Firpo & Kaz Firpo.

Directed by Chloe Zhao.

★★½ 

This is the 26th movie in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and some of the seams are showing in keeping such a franchise together. How many more new superhumans can be introduced without it feeling like we're going through the motions of the usual superhero origin story?

The Eternals are a group of ten immortal beings (though they can be killed) who were sent to Earth in 5000 BC to watch over it by Arishem, the leader of a gigantic god-like race called the Celestials. The Eternals are led by Ajak (Salma Hayek), and only she can communicate with Arishem. They have been told not to interfere with human conflict, as conflicts are what help a race of sentient creatures evolve. We see them throughout history and get to know their personalities a little. Ajak is the wise one who can heal. Ikaris (Richard Madden) closely resembles Superman in his abilities of flight, super-strength, and the ability to shoot fire-beams from his eyes. Sersi (Gemma Chan) can transform elements, such as turning solid rock into water. Druig (Barry Keoghan) can control minds. Thena (Angelina Jolie) was the inspiration for Athena, the goddess of war in ancient Greece. She is a master fighter and can generate weapons from energy. Kingo (Kumail Nanjiani) can focus energy and fire it in blasts. Sprite (Lia McHugh) appears eternally 12 years old and can create illusions. Gilgamesh (Don Lee) has super-human punching power than puts Iron Fist to shame.  Phastos (Brian Tyree Henry) is the intelligent inventor who can perform telekinesis. Makkari (Lauren Ridloff) has superspeed, and the MCU's first deaf superhero.

Game of Thrones' Kit Harington? Oh he's Dane Whitman, the regular human boyfriend of Sersi. I was amused when Ikaris and Dane meet, as if they weren't brothers from a fantasy world.

The Eternals' main task is to rid the world of the Deviants, mutant magical creatures that seek constant destruction on Earth. We eventually learn that 1521 AD is when the last of the Deviants was killed, and that point the Eternals parted ways and lived amongst the humans, waiting for Arishem to let them know their job was done and they can return to their home planet.

But 500 years later,  in "Present Day", a Deviant appears in London and attacks Sersi while she is hanging out with Dane and Sprite. She decides they need to find the other Eternals and figure out why the Deviants are back.

This massive ensemble - ten Eternals - means that few of the characters really get to stand out. It did have a couple plot twists I wasn't expecting, so that was nice. I'm not spoiling much by saying one of them dies within the first hour. But there's a lot of wheel-spinning as this character or that gives exposition and flashes back to different points in time. It does ultimately answer the questions of "Why didn't the Eternals help the Avengers? Or stop slavery or genocide?"

The fight scenes are fine, but where Shang-Chi found ways to make them feel original and exciting until the final CGI-heavy battle, this one is nothing but CGI-heavy battles. They feel like battles we've seen a hundred times before.

The best part of the movie for me is the last twenty minutes or so and the post-credits scenes, with its implications for the rest of the MCU. And I think it'd be fun to see these characters pop up in the next Avengers movie. I love the MCU. But if I'm ranking all 26 movies, this one would be closer to the bottom of the list than the middle.

Eternals is #1 at box office

For the weekend of November 5-7, 2021, Eternals isn't exactly a bomb for Marvel, but it's not at the level the MCU is used to. Considering that Venom 2 opened to $90 million, and that this opened lower than Shang-Chi ($75), it could be a combination of superhero saturation and that many people still aren't going back to the movies. It doesn't help that Eternals has the lowest score ever for an MCU title (48%). In fact, it's the only MCU title that hasn't had at least 66%.

Kristen Stewart's Spencer wasn't expected to be a hit, so its modest opening is about what was expected.

Speaking on Venom 2, it's on its way to join Shang-Chi as the second movie of 2021 to hit $200 million domestic.

Opens This Week

CLIFFORD THE BIG RED DOG with Rosie Perez, John Cleese and Sienna Guillory.

BELFAST with Caitriona Balfe, Jude Hill, Jamie Dornan and Lewis McAskie.

Worldwide grosses for US films in 2021:

1. F9: The Fast Saga - $721.07 million

2. No Time to Die - $667.46

3. Godzilla v. Kong - $467.86

4. Shang-Chi - $427.85

5. Venom 2 - $424.61

6. Black Widow - $379.63

7. Free Guy - $331.15

8. Dune - $330.44

9. A Quiet Place II - $297.65

10. Cruella - $233.27