Michael Caine

Reviews of “The Last Witch Hunter” and “Steve Jobs”

The Last Witch Hunter

After the death of his wife and child, Kaulder (Vin Diesel) joins other 13th century witch hunters in the search for the Witch Queen (Julie Engelbrecht) responsible for the plague that killed their families. Within a massive tree, Kaulder finds the Witch Queen and runs her through with his burning sword; however, before she dies she curses Kaulder with immortality. Eight-hundred years later there’s a truce between the priests that oversee Kaulder as the last witch hunter and witches. As long as they don’t practice magic on humans they won’t be hunted, tried before a council and locked up in a prison below the church. The priest that works directly with the witch hunter is called a Dolan. He acts as a guide, confessor and scribe writing down all of the hunter’s adventures. The 36th Dolan (Michael Caine) is retiring and will be replaced by the 37th Dolan (Elijah Wood). On his last night the 36th Dolan dies in his apartment, apparently of natural causes; but Kaulder is suspicious. Looking for the signs of magic, Kaulder finds the elder Dolan was put under a spell that mimics death and was tortured for information. He left clues behind telling the witch hunter to relive his death inside that tree. Needing a potion to help him remember what happened right after the death of the Witch Queen, Kaulder seeks the aid of a young witch named Chloe (Rose Leslie) at a bar that is exclusively for witches. Chloe creates the potion but Kaulder is attacked by a powerful witch named Belial (Olafur Darri Olafsson) trying to stop him. Strange and dangerous forces are trying to keep Kaulder from seeing what happened after the Witch Queen cursed him. The question is why?

With a Rotten Tomatoes score in the mid-teens I was surprised I enjoyed the first half or so of “The Last Witch Hunter.” The writers of the film had created an interesting world largely populated with unique characters doing strange and fanciful things. Had it continued that way I might have been one of the movie’s loudest supporters. As it is, I’m lukewarm on the latest Vin Diesel project because it trades in imagination for generic action thrills.

Diesel actually manages something akin to warmth in parts of the film. He has a brief interaction on a plane with a child and shows a bit of charm. His scenes with Rose Leslie don’t devolve into an uncomfortable romance as I was afraid it might but the pair has a rough chemistry that serves the story. The father/son relationship between Diesel and Michael Caine felt a bit forced but still managed to seem like a friendship that had been around for a while. Elijah Wood is under used in his role so he and Diesel’s characters never feel like they are really partners. Perhaps that was the goal. No one in the movie does a bad job in their role. Sadly, they aren’t given that much to work with.

The film is let down by a third act that is just scaffolding to get to the action/sfx scenes. We get a few brief glimpses at what Kaulder has lost at the hands of the Witch Queen and the events in that third act contradict what we’ve seen before. I’m trying to avoid giving away too many plot details; but the story kind of reverses itself in a blatant attempt to create a need for a sequel. With opening weekend domestic box office of less than $11-million, that seems unlikely.

“The Last Witch Hunter” is rated PG-13 for sequences of fantasy violence and frightening images. We see people stabbed with swords and knives. There are a few large, ugly creatures. The Witch Queen will be scary for the very youngest viewers. A character is impaled on a spike through the shoulder. A character is consumed by vines at the base of a tree. A character is shown ripping their skin off to reveal a different creature inside. Foul language is widely scattered and very mild.

The world of “The Last Witch Hunter” could have been fascinating if the vision of the writers early in their script has been carried through to the end. As it is, the movie becomes a predictable action/fantasy with some decent visuals but is nothing special. I wish it had been the kind of film that put a spell on me but alas, it’s all just a cheap trick.

“The Last Witch Hunter” gets three stars out of five.

Steve Jobs

Preparing to give a public demonstration of the new Macintosh computer Steve Jobs (Michael Fassbender) is berating Andy Hertzfeld (Michael Stuhlbarg), one of his engineers, because the vocal program is having a hard time saying “Hello.” Jobs wants to show how friendly the Macintosh is and refuses to pull it from the demonstration. His long-suffering personal assistant Joanna Hoffman (Kate Winslet) is attempting to coordinate the presentation while wrangling the taciturn Jobs. Steve Wozniak (Seth Rogen) is trying to get Jobs to thank the Apple II engineers during the presentation but Jobs refuses saying it looks back in the past and the Macintosh is the future. Waiting backstage is Chrisann Brennan (Katherine Waterston) with her daughter Lisa. Based on a blood test a judge ruled that Jobs was Lisa’s father but he denies that. In a magazine article, Jobs says that up to 28% of the men in America could also be Lisa’s father. This angers Chrisann as it appears Jobs is saying she sleeps with many different men. Chrisann wants money over and above the child support the judge granted her. Jobs only pays attention to Lisa when she takes an interest in the Macintosh in the dressing room.

“Steve Jobs” tells a story about the face of Apple using three product launch events in front of hundreds of adoring fans. Jobs could do no wrong in their eyes and everything he touched they thought was the next big thing. In the film, Jobs seems to only be comfortable on the stage in front of those that didn’t know him. In the film, being a part of Steve Jobs life seemed like a less than pleasant experience. The movie also is less than pleasant as it loses its belief in itself and tries to turn Steve Jobs into a misunderstood teddy bear.

Michael Fassbender may get some awards season love for playing the title role. His performance is mesmerizing. Jobs is a ball of energy that can become dangerously focused on anyone that he feels has done him a disservice or isn’t living up to his expectations. Jobs is shown in the film as a man with a singular vision he feels must be put forth unadulterated. It’s the same whether he’s involved in business or personal matters. Fassbender is absorbed in the role and it must have been emotionally taxing for him. Playing a person of such conviction and willingness to mow down anyone that might get in the way has to take its toll. Fassbender manages to be charismatic even when making threats or explaining something that doesn’t need explaining. His performance, and the performances of Kate Winslet, Seth Rogen, Jeff Daniels Katherine Waterston and the rest of the cast, is outstanding. Sadly, they are all let down by a script that doesn’t believe in its own convictions.

While Steve Jobs is shown to be able to express a tiny amount of warmth and compassion, the majority of the movie’s two hour running time is spent showing the man as the lowest form of life. He’s rude, egotistical and doesn’t take anyone’s feelings into consideration. If he was anything like portrayed on screen it’s a miracle someone didn’t put a bullet in him at some time in his life. Writer Aaron Sorkin does a good job of making Jobs unlikable. Then, out of left field, we get a scene that could best be described as redemptive. For me, it completely didn’t work. It is pounded into our minds what a dirt bag Jobs is. He denies Lisa is his daughter, he threatens to have Chrisann killed, he is prepared to embarrass one of his engineers in front of an auditorium full of people if the Macintosh voice synthesizer doesn’t work and that’s just a few of the things shown in the movie and then, without any set up or evidence to the contrary, we are shown a warm and fuzzy Steve Jobs. Perhaps, as he aged, Jobs become more human. The movie doesn’t give us any indication that it happens or why. One of the most brutal confrontations occurs not long before this miraculous conversion. Jobs is as blunt and biting as he is in any other scene in the movie and then, a few minutes later, he’s overflowing with love, compassion and contrition. It takes what is a scathing portrait of a well-known figure and cheapens it into a feel-good family melodrama.

“Steve Jobs” is rated R for language. Foul language is infrequent.

I realize I’m in the minority on this one but “Steve Jobs” isn’t the brave and searing portrait of one of the best known tech giants in history; instead, it shows us a flawed but brilliant man and tries to redeem him using cheap emotional tricks. Jobs deserved better.

“Steve Jobs” gets three stars out of five.

Three new movies close out the month of October looking to scare up some business. I’ll see and review at least one of them.

Burnt—

Our Brand is Crisis—

Scouts Guide to the Zombie Apocalypse—

Follow me on Twitter @moviemanstan and send emails to stanthemovieman@comcast.net.

Review of “Kingsman: The Secret Service”

For weeks, the only thing anyone heard about as far as movies were concerned was “Fifty Shades of Grey” and how it would dominate (pardon the expression) the box office over Valentine’s weekend. It lived up to expectations tying up (again, pardon the expression) over $81-million in ticket sales. While the rest of the competition was mostly spanked (see apologies above) there was one new movie that managed to pull in a respectable amount of money despite lacking any whips, riding crops and blindfolds. “Kingsman: The Secret Service” is what I saw and I suggest you see it as well.

Gary “Eggsy” Unwin (Taron Egerton) is an intelligent young man who seems to be wasting his life with alcohol, drugs and petty crimes. He’s approached by a Harry Hart (Colin Firth), a dapper gentleman, who tells Eggsy he knew the boy’s deceased father. Hart is a member of a secret British intelligence organization called the Kingsmen. Hart, whose code name is Galahad, operates out of a tailor shop. While the average patron can be fitted for a custom-made suit, a Kingsman agent can access specialty weapons and an underground pneumatic transport system that goes directly to a villa in the English countryside, the headquarters of the Kingsmen. Galahad informs Eggsy his father was a Kingsman and died on a mission when Eggsy was a very young boy. Galahad encourages Eggsy to try out for a recent opening due to the death of an agent codenamed Lancelot. Lancelot died trying to rescue Professor James Arnold (Mark Hamill), an environmental and global warming expert who had been kidnapped by Richmond Valentine (Samuel L. Jackson) and his accomplice Gazelle (Sofia Boutella). Gazelle has prosthetic legs armed with razor sharp swords which she uses to kill Lancelot. Valentine, a tech billionaire, has been trying for years to get politicians to do something about carbon emissions without success. He has developed a new plan and approaches many celebrities and world leaders for their support, offering them deals they cannot refuse. For those who turn Valentine down, they are locked up in his mountain headquarters. While Valentine wants to save the planet, he doesn’t care how many billions of people have to die to make his plan succeed. Eggsy and several other young people are led through the many tests and trials to become a Kingsman by Agent Merlin (Mark Strong) while Galahad continues his investigation into Valentine’s plan.

“Kingsman: The Secret Service” has a very light, jaunty feel to it. It doesn’t take itself seriously and is able to create both humor and excitement, often simultaneously. The film succeeds at being entertaining for several reasons. First, the story moves at a quick pace, rarely staying in the same place for very long. The filmmakers know the target audience doesn’t like taking the time for a huge amount of backstory so much of that is handled in a few sentences at appropriate times. This cuts down on long scenes of exposition and keeps the plot moving forward.

A second reason is the cast. A film like “Kingsman: The Secret Service” rarely has a group of actors with this many A-listers. Colin Firth, Samuel L. Jackson, Mark Strong, Michael Caine and Mark Hamill all in one film based on a comic book is not something one sees every weekend. The lesser known members of the cast, Taron Egerton, Sophie Cookson and Sofia Boutella, are a nice garnish to an already stellar mixture of actors. Everyone in the film is excellent and they all seem to be having a great time.

The script seems to have its tongue firmly planted in its cheek. The style and tone of the dialog, usually delivered in either an upper crust or working class British accent, just feels like fun. Even when the movie has its bloodier moments, and there are plenty, the script manages to keep things light. It also doesn’t mind taking a look at other films of the genre, including the granddaddy of them all the “Bond” series. Firth’s character makes reference to the darker tone of the most recent films and says he prefers the earlier incarnations of Bond. The movie seems to pay homage to those films with the number of gadgets a Kingsman has at his disposal. I won’t try to mention them all here but they run the gamut from classic (knife popping out of the toe of a shoe) to fantastic (a bulletproof umbrella with other built-in weapons). Some of these gadgets are more believable and hence more effective than others. Still, one must suspend some disbelief if the movie is to be enjoyed. The film uses technology heavily throughout the story including the main plan of the villain. The movie may actually depend too much on gadgets to keep the action moving. A spy movie should be mostly about the spy doing some spying. That isn’t so much the case here; however, this is a minor fault when compared to how entertaining the rest of the film is.

“Kingsman: The Secret Service” is rated R for sequences of strong violence, language and some sexual content. There are numerous violent and bloody deaths in the film including numerous head shots, limbs severed, a person cut in half down the middle and numerous images of heads exploding. Surprisingly, the exploding heads are handled in a rather tasteful way. There is very little gore and it mostly looks like colored smoke billowing up from the neck. There is an early passing reference to sex then late in the film we get a brief glimpse at a young woman’s backside with the understanding that anal sex is about to occur. Foul language is common throughout the film.

“Kingsman: The Secret Service” is a spy film populated with very interesting characters including Samuel L. Jackson’s lisping villain and Sofia Boutella’s blade runner prosthetic wearing henchperson. It also features an exciting story, terrific action and likable characters about whom I wanted to know more. While it depends a bit too much on technology and not enough on the human aspect, there are still characters we root for and want to see triumph. It may never win any major awards or be considered a classic but it is a fun way to spend a couple of hours in a movie theatre without feeling like you need to take a shower afterwards.

“Kingsman: The Secret Service” gets five stars out of five.

This week, four new movies (assuming the expected snow melts in time for me to get out) vie for your entertainment dollars. I’ll see and review one of the following:

The DUFF—

Hot Tub Time Machine 2—

McFarland USA—

Still Alice—

Follow me on Twitter @moviemanstan and send emails to stanthemovieman@comcast.net.

Reviews of “Interstellar” and “Big Hero 6”

Some movies get very little advance publicity. You don’t hear about them until right before they come out. You don’t see any banner ads on the Internet. You don’t hear your friends talking about them and you sometimes might not see a trailer until a few weeks before the release. That cannot be said for this week’s movies at “Interstellar” and “Big Hero 6” have been the subject of the kind of pre-release publicity you see only for films that are expected to be blockbusters or come from filmmakers who are expected to release something you haven’t quite seen before. Both are true of these films.

Interstellar

Earth is dying. Actually, the people on Earth are dying because of various vegetable crop blights that have killed off many mainstay foods. Famine is widespread and over-farming is creating dust bowl conditions over huge parts of the planet. Nearly everyone is a farmer of some sort but mostly of corn. One of those corn farmers is Cooper (Matthew McConaughey), a former astronaut. He has two children, his daughter Murphy (played a various ages by Mackenzie Foy, Jessica Chastain and Ellen Burstyn) and son Tom (played by Timothee Chalamet and Casey Affleck) but is raising them with his father-in-law Donald (John Lithgow) because his wife died of an undiagnosed brain cyst. Since the beginning of the food shortage, science and technology that has nothing to do with farming have fallen out of favor; so much so that textbooks have been changed to say the moon landings were faked to force the old Soviet Union to bankrupt itself to keep pace. Murphy, or Murph as she is often called, loves science and has a curious and hungry mind that Cooper fosters and when books begin falling randomly from the shelves in Murph’s room, Cooper urges her to figure it out scientifically and not assume it’s a ghost. One day after a dust storm, Murph and Cooper are standing in her room when they notice the dust is settling in patterns. These patterns are due to gravity fluctuations. Doing some math, Cooper figures out a series of coordinates that are a couple of hours away by truck. Cooper and Murph head out to find the source of the anomaly and discover a military base. They are captured by guards and brought inside where they meet Amelia Brand (Anne Hathaway) and her father Dr. Brand (Michael Caine). Dr. Brand was one of Cooper’s college professors and he tells Cooper that what he’s stumbled upon is the remnants of NASA. Originally disbanded because it was considered a waste of money, NASA is now operating in secret to investigate a wormhole that formed 50 years earlier near the orbit of Saturn. Dr. Brand wants Cooper to lead a team consisting of Amelia, Doyle (Wes Bentley) and Romilly (David Gyasi) to take a ship through the wormhole and check out three worlds that might be habitable on the other side. Twelve teams were sent through years earlier each to a separate planet. The wormhole keeps communication to a minimum so Dr. Brand wants to send a team to check on them and come back with the world that might be a new home for humanity.

That is a basic synopsis of the first 30 minutes of Christopher Nolan’s 169 minute “Interstellar.” That’s a long movie and it had better be interesting to keep my attention for the full running time. “Interstellar” is not only capable of keeping your attention; it makes you wish the movie was actually longer. As a sci-fi fan, I was engrossed by the visual interpretation of a wormhole and later a black hole. I watch as many science documentaries as I can find on the subject of space and quantum theory and humanity’s possible future colonization of the moon, Mars and planets beyond so this movie is squarely in my wheelhouse. On the other hand, if you get glassy eyed at the technobabble, don’t be afraid as “Interstellar” is really about more down to earth subjects.

At the core of Nolan’s film is the relationship between Cooper and Murph. Theirs is a special, deep bond that is frequently lacking in real life between fathers and daughters. When Cooper agrees to take the mission and can’t tell Murph how long he’ll be gone, she is heartbroken and angry beyond words. That feeling of abandonment, probably amplified by the death of her mother, is a theme that runs throughout “Interstellar.” It plays out on a couple of different levels that I shan’t discuss as to not spoil the film for you; but be aware, it is at the heart of what’s driving the film. Even when Cooper and his team are on the surfaces of other planets, loss, abandonment, fear and anger are just as prevalent as they are at home. Grounding the film in such deep and understandable emotion is why “Interstellar” is more than just a special effects picture.

Of course, the special effects are spectacular. From the spaceships to the robots and from the wormhole to the spacesuits, “Interstellar” is the kind of visual feast one doesn’t get very often. A great deal of care was taken with the representation of the wormhole and the production used theoretical physicist Dr. Kip Thorne as a science advisor. Unlike most films that would just use other representations of such objects found in other films or television shows, “Interstellar” used the research of Dr. Thorne to try and create the most accurate representation of a wormhole and a black hole that has ever been seen. According to Thorne, his work on the movie has led to a new scientific paper for the world of astrophysics. The spaceships and other technical aspects of space travel appear to have been well researched also. There doesn’t appear to be any wildly outlandish technology on display. While many people might question robots that look like representations of the monolith in “2001: A Space Odyssey,” the way they move and interact with the humans on the crew makes perfect sense. The landscapes of the alien worlds they visit are also spectacular without being overly “alien.” One world is made up mostly of a shallow sea while the other is a frozen wasteland. Both locations were in Iceland and are perfect for representing a different planet.

So the emotion, the science and the look of the movie are all fantastic. That means “Interstellar” is perfect, right? Not quite. While the movie mostly works, the way things are all tied together struck me as a bit too neat and sweet. Again, I don’t want to give away anything; but I will say the way Nolan and company decided to resolve the film felt a bit cheap. It is designed to make you say “aww” and possibly roll a tear; however, it left me a bit dumbstruck that all that preceded led to this. I’m being vague so as to not blow anything for you. You may see the movie and think it all makes perfect sense and wonder how I can be so heartless as to complain. That’s fine as we all are allowed to have our opinions. That is mine.

“Interstellar” is rated PG-13 for some intense perilous action and brief strong language. There are a couple of physical confrontations, one more aggressive than the rest. Foul language is minimal but the movie does use its one rating-allowed F-bomb.

“Interstellar” is an engrossing film that will make you forget about its nearly three hour running time (and your overwhelming need to urinate). The film is spectacular in all ways with the exception of a tidying up of story that, to me, felt a bit cheap and lazy. I’m willing to forgive that small issue as the rest of the movie more than makes up for it.

“Interstellar” gets five stars out of five.

Big Hero 6

Hiro Hamada (voice of Ryan Potter) is a genius in robotics engineering. After graduating from high school at age 13, the now 14 year old Hiro is using his talents to compete in illegal robot fighting and the gambling that surrounds it. His brother, Tadashi (voice of Daniel Henney), wants Hiro to join him at college in the engineering department. Taking him for a tour of his campus workshop, Hiro meets Tadashi’s friends and fellow students Go Go Tomago (voice of Jamie Chung), Wasabi (voice of Damon Wayans, Jr.), Honey Lemon (voice of Genesis Rodriguez) and Fred (voice of T. J. Miller). Fred is not a student but loves science and hopes his friends can one day turn him into a fire-breathing dragon. Tadashi shows Hiro what he’s working on: A healthcare robot named Baymax (voice of Scott Adsit). Baymax only function is to care for the injured and provide comfort until they tell him they are satisfied with their care. Hiro is impressed by what he sees what Tadashi and the other students are doing and wants to join Tadashi. He meets the head of the engineering department Professor Robert Callaghan (voice of James Cromwell) who says he might belong at the school if he’s good enough. There’s a showcase for prospective students and inventors in a few weeks and Hiro decides to enter and see if he can get an invitation to come to the school. Working diligently, Hiro invents microbots, a swarm of inch long robots that work in concert to construct anything the operator can think of. They are controlled by a headband that projects the users’ thoughts to the microbots. The display impresses Professor Callaghan who offers admission to the school and also industrialist Alistair Krei (voiced by Alan Tudyk) who offers to buy the microbots on the spot. Professor Callaghan reacts negatively to Krei’s offer and urges Hiro not to accept. Hiro doesn’t sell and Krei walks away in a bit of a huff. Later Tadashi and Hiro are walking around campus when they see the engineering building is on fire. Someone says Professor Callaghan is trapped and Tadashi runs inside just before the building explodes, killing him and Callaghan. Distraught, Hiro stays in his room and doesn’t start school. Dropping an object on his foot, Hiro accidently activates Baymax who has been stored in Tadashi’s old room. It is also about this time that Hiro finds a stray microbot in this jacket pocket. It seems to be trying to join with the others but they were all destroyed in the fire. Baymax decides to see where the microbot wants to go and Hiro reluctantly follows. At a warehouse, Hiro and Baymax find someone is mass producing microbots. They are then attacked by a man in a mask who is controlling the millions of microbots. Barely escaping, Hiro decides to upgrade Baymax with carbon-fiber armor and investigate the mysterious man in the mask. Baymax, concerned about Hiro’s emotional state after the loss of his brother, contracts Tadashi’s five classmates who all come to cheer Hiro up as he’s investigating back at the warehouse. The masked man and microbots attack the whole group and they escape to Fred’s house which turns out to be a mansion. Using the research projects of each of Tadashi’s friends, Hiro designs armor and weapons for the five of them (creating a dragon suit that breathes fire for Fred) and they form a group of superheroes to stop the man in the mask from causing mass destruction and turn him over to the police for killing Tadashi and the professor.

“Big Hero 6” is a lesser known Marvel Comics property whose members bear little resemblance to the characters in the movie. That’s okay as this group of teens and twenty-somethings is far more relatable then the gonzo group of characters in the comic book. While it doesn’t exactly ground the group in reality, it is far more relevant in today’s world.

First and foremost, “Big Hero 6” is a kid’s movie. The bright colors, the characters that are just slightly older than the target audience and the use of familial loss as the basis for the story are just part of what makes the film so kid friendly. That doesn’t mean their parents won’t like it also, as the movie is action packed and has some great voice performances and plenty of humor that works for both kids and adults.

Like “Interstellar,” “Big Hero 6” is about more than what is on the surface. Dealing with loss and finding constructive ways to use your talents is a couple of themes along with not letting yourself be consumed by revenge. All the elements work together to create a movie that is both a great way to pass the time and to begin a conversation with children about somewhat more grownup topics.

While watered down, the use of Japanese imagery and architecture in the mashed-up city of San Fransokyo is a nice way to introduce another culture to American children. As a nation, we are usually so focused on our immediate problems and surroundings we don’t remember to enjoy the numerous cultures that make up our society. While you won’t see anything that will start a conversation about Japan, it at least gives the eye something to look at that isn’t your standard Americana. It’s a small thing but I noticed it.

“Big Hero 6” is rated PG for some rude humor, action/peril and thematic elements. I don’t remember what the rude humor was so it must not have been terribly rude. The bad guy uses the microbots to lob large cargo containers at our heroes. There are also times when the microbots are used like fists to punch characters. The concepts of death, grief and revenge might trouble some younger viewers.

It uses everything very well and made me think and feel and nearly cry, so “Big Hero 6” worked on every level for me and for the audience of families I saw it with. The kids would ask questions about why Hiro was sad and where Tadashi was and why the man in the mask was being mean to Baymax. While I normally don’t like kids talking in a movie, I didn’t mind it so much this time. It meant they were paying attention and the movie engaged their minds. That’s far more than can be said for most films, for either kids or adults. That fact that it’s also a great deal of fun doesn’t hurt either.

“Big Hero 6” also gets five stars.

Here are my extemporaneous comments right after I saw the movies.

Feel free to comment or, if you’d prefer, send me an email to stanthemovieman@comcast.net and you can follow me on Twitter @moviemanstan.

Next week, I’ll be seeing either “Dumb and Dumber To”

or “Beyond the Lights.”