2016 Movies in Review - Part One

As promised, here is that 2016 Movies in Review article. However, given the number of movies I saw this year, I’ve had to split it up, so here’s the first part that gets us through about the first half of the year. The next part will cover the rest of the year, and I may do a catch-up article as well, picking up some of the leftovers.

But let’s get on with it!

Kung Fu Panda 3

It’s hard not to be a fan of Kung Fu Panda. Between the antics of a Jack-Black-voiced panda bear and the obvious love letter to classic martial arts cinema, it was a great film. And after the second one was even better, a third movie was inevitable, and I was looking forward to it. Apparently, my sights were set way too high.

To start off, the animation is very good, showing incredible detail but still retaining the cartoony nature of the characters and setting. Unfortunately, Kung Fu Panda 3 suffers from what I call “kids’ movie syndrome,” where the story moves from plot point to plot point with hardly any time to let things settle or breathe (something Kung Fu Panda 2 did very well). The story isn’t bad, but kind of falls apart at the end in order to justify a rather saccharine ending (which also kind of undermines the “there is no chosen one” message of the first film). The villain, voiced by an under-utilized J.K. Simmons, is rather forgettable (in contrast to the previous films’ great villains), and the soundtrack, despite Zimmer’s epic touch, is marred by a strange villain theme that legally borrows a riff from an Imagine Dragons song, which threw me out of the experience every time.

In short, a disappointment, especially since the first two were so good. Perhaps it has something to do with most of the work being done in Dreamworks new Chinese studio, giving the whole movie an “outsourced” feeling. Maybe they’ll do better with the next one (though I have no idea what it would be about!).

Deadpool

I can’t decide how I feel about Deadpool. Half the time, I was thoroughly enjoying myself, laughing out loud and having a blast. The other half, though, I was cringing at some of the South Park levels of excessive language and crude humor. This is a movie that wears it’s R-rated nature on its sleeve and takes every opportunity to remind you.

That being said, Ryan Reynolds really does sell the part, talking to the audience throughout the whole film, and you can tell there’s a tangible sense of passion and effort going into the whole production, which ensures that this will be a cult classic for years to come. The opening is quite brilliant, starting off small and getting bigger and crazier as it grows (all while poking fun at other opening credits scenes). The plot does jump around a lot, but it’s not hard to follow. The action scenes are very cartoony for an R-Rated film, making them pretty entertaining.

I don’t know if I’ll ever watch this again, but when the promised sequel comes around, I’ll certainly take a look. Also, this film has the best post-credits stinger ever. That thing was brilliant.

Zootopia

I kind of forgot this film came out this year, as I ended up watching it at home later on. Still, Zootopia is a great film that surprises viewers with a clever script and some interesting story turns. The secret to this kids’ film is that it’s not really a kids’ film, but rather something closer to a noir thriller as secrets are revealed to show more secrets, coming together in the end for a pretty good showdown.

There is a message to the movie that’s pretty obvious, but (unlike some other movies) it’s so deftly weaved into the story that you end up only really noticing it whenever it’s relevant. The star of the series, though, is all of the world-building and background details, showing a very detailed example of what a world of walking/talking animals might be like.

Zootopia is a fun film that does a good job of being much more than just a funny animals movie, not only in its story but also in its heart when it could have been easily a message-driven pile of mediocrity like many other kids films end up being.

Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice

I ended up missing this in theaters as well, so when I did sit down to watch it, I went for the “ultimate/unrated” version. What I got was a 3-hour movie that felt like a 4-hour movie.

To their credit, Warner Bros. has succeeded in making the DC movies feel pretty unique, with their austere sense of importance and general larger-than-life myth making. Unfortunately, it also means that the story just seems to crawl along, with each moment feeling dull and sluggish. Even the action scenes rarely feel alive (the best of which ends up being a dream sequence anyway!).

Despite all the hubbub, Ben Affleck is a rather bland Batman, as far as I’m concerned; just kind of averagely grizzled and brooding. However, I liked this version of Lex Luthor more than most other people did. He seemed unstable and unpredictable in a good way, I thought. Unfortunately, everyone else is pretty forgettable, even Wonder Woman, really. And the way the story bends over backwards to make Lois Lane relevant is just plain silly.

BvS also shows how desperate Warner Bros. are to have the complex and robust world-building Marvel has developed over the years. Unfortunately, it’s obvious that they’re not willing to spend the time to do it properly, instead simply dumping its teasers and plot threads in a clumsy and confusing manner. It just makes the movie even more clunky and hard to follow.

Maybe I’m just biased, but I think it’s pretty clear at this point that DC has a long way to go to catch up with the MCU, and compared to the classic DC Animated Universe from 15 years ago, it’s downright embarrassing.

Captain America: Civil War

Just as a quick recap: I have been a fan of the MCU ever since it all came together in the first Avengers film. Things have been a little hit-and-miss since then, but overall, I’m still enjoy how each piece fits together for a bigger story.

So when Captain America: Civil War starting teasing audiences, it seemed like a continuation of the same great stream of movies. When I sat down and watched, I had a good time. However, when I walked out of the movie theater, I couldn’t help but feel underwhelmed somehow, like something was missing or it wasn’t adding up the way I thought. Part of me wondered if maybe I let myself get overhyped with all the trailers and such, but as I continued to see some similar opinions from around the internet, I started to pin down those feelings I had.

Essentially, it’s all fluff. That’s not to say that I feel like it needed bigger stakes or more big changes in the continuity, but there is this sense that this movie feels like it’s just coasting along with its previous successes. This movie works because of the previous movies, not because of anything the movie itself has. It’s that kind of writing you expect from television, where one episode is mediocre, but carries the bigger story along just fine. For movies, though, I think the take-away should be more significant.

Not to put down Civil War’s strengths. The action is well done and the story (if a little convoluted) does a pretty good job introducing some new characters and showing new sides of old ones. And it would be remiss if I didn’t admit that the fight at the airport isn’t some amazing Marvel-style fan service of epic proportions. It’s Marvel doing what Marvel does best. 

Unfortunately, I don’t think all the pieces fit as well as the earlier films. The third act in particular feels rather weak, all to set up this big fight that, while well-directed, just falls flat emotionally. It’s all supposed to be this big dramatic moment, and all I felt was apathy. I almost have the impression that this film was made just by rubbing all of the other ones together and seeing what would happen. In the end, I think Civil War was a decent, fun movie that really doesn’t have any weight to it.

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Well, that's it for now. Part 2 will be coming soon, so keep an eye out for that!