Yup, I finally got around to enough movies to pull together one final collection of movie reviews. Perhaps some of these are not the most timely, but I admit I just haven't been watching movies as much as I used to. There's definitely a pretty bizarre mix of films, this time, but I suppose that's going to happen if I continue to review them as I see them. In any case, here's the latest batch.
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I have to admit that 2022 hasn't been a great year for movies. While I've seen a few decent ones, nothing really blew me away as being a solid experience, until I saw Bullet Train. This is a very dark comedy kind of action film that proceeds to be quite excellent at both, without bogging down or losing its tone. Simply a blast from start to finish.
The story starts out with Brad Pitt playing a former assassin named Ladybug who is trying to turn himself around and do more tame jobs. However, when tasked with picking up a case on a train, things go sideways in a hurry, especially as the train seems populated by all kinds of criminals eager to get their hands on that same case. From there, the movie essentially jams about six different exploitation films at once, mixing in everything from the Mexicans to the Japanese to the British to the Russians. At first, it almost feels like it's going to be too dense to really follow, but the comedic tone (and the nature of Ladybug's desire to not get involved despite all that's going on around him) ensures that the pace doesn't slow down or get too caught up in its own worldbuilding. It also helps that the entire cast is completely game for this brand of nonsense, and they all play it to the hilt, with just enough camp to carry its tongue-in-cheek nature.
The result is a hilarious ride (no pun intended) that pulls no punches. The action is top-notch and well-choreographed (not surprising with David Leitch in the director's chair), and while the dark humor and comical gore might not be for everyone, it nails the jokes well without wallowing in them. If you thought the pacing and humor of Deadpool was good, but didn't care for the fourth-wall breaking shenanigans or infantile nature of the hero, then this movie is for you, because I think this outdoes either Deadpool movie, in my opinion. This is a movie that knows exactly what it wants to be and does so with style. The best movie of the year, without a doubt.
Let me first of all say that I am a big Weird Al fan, since my friend Kason got me hooked on them in middle school. He's always had fun, inventive lyrics, and while he's been rather quiet in the songwriting department, when I heard he was doing a biopic parody based on himself, I was pretty excited.
So it's with some trepidation that I say I found the film to be just okay. While a good chunk of his humor is in here, there's also a pretty heavy dose of the awkwardness style of humor that I just don't care for. (For example, I have never enjoyed The Office tv show; it's just too painful for me.) A lot of it has to do with the film's dedication to matching the beats of the typical musical biography film, starting with parents that don't understand, and accordions being a symbol of hedonism and debauchery (I'm not kidding), making Weird Al this rebellious icon of music stardom. At first, it gets pretty entertaining, especially when Dr. Demento shows up and the references start rolling in. But it eventually starts going off the rails, especially when Weird Al starts killing a bunch of mercenaries in order to save his girlfriend Madonna from Pablo Escobar in the jungles of South America (I am not making that up).
Of course, taste in humor is subjective, and most folks may think this style of anxiety-based theatrics is the height of hilarity (Nacho Libre certainly comes to mind), though they may feel they're missing some of the deeper jokes. There's also a chance that, when I watch this again (because I probably will), I'll find it funnier despite knowing what's coming. Still, I kinda wish it did more than just the stuff of the 80s (aside from a handful of references and one major song), but there are plenty of easter eggs for fans to pick out. As for me, it was generally entertaining but otherwise, rather underwhelming.
When I had heard that Kevin Conroy had passed away, I was rather surprised. Apparently he had been fighting cancer for a while, but I had no idea. I generally consider him to be the best version of Batman across all mediums, as his voice was perfect for the role. Not only could he handle the flamboyant playboy Bruce Wayne, but his tone as the Caped Crusader was iconic, and yet, never farcical or overly gritty. As they continue to make cartoons of the character, his voice is going to loom over any voice actor to takes on the role for the next several generations (though I do think a few have done alright here and there already).
Nevertheless, when I heard the news, I thought I would take the time to watch some of Kevin Conroy's work, and then I remembered that I had gotten Mystery of the Batwoman on Blu-Ray, but had never watched it. Released at the height of the Justice League cartoon, the movie takes us back to the perpetual noir twilight of Gotham and it's vigilantes. While the movie generally plays like an extended episode of the 90s Batman cartoons with a much bigger budget, that's certainly not a bad thing, as the show was generally high quality stuff. Here, we see our caped crusader wrangling with the appearance of a new costumed hero very heavily inspired on his motif, only to have a handful of potential femme fatales enter his life that qualify for the role. As Batman works his way around the ladies, the Batwoman seems obsessed with stopping the Penguin and Rupert Thorne's plan of selling high-powered weapons to foreign powers, and they even bring in Bane to deal with their multiplying Bat problem.
For fans of the original cartoon, there really aren't many surprises, though there are a few continuity nods here and there. The story seems to drift from plot point to plot point, and while the mystery is mostly interesting, once it's revealed, the movie basically becomes an action-driven explosion fest. If there is a problem, it's that the Batwoman character feels kind of shallow, once all the cards are on the table. She has an interesting gimmick, but I feel like more could have been done with it other than to complicate the story more than necessary. Nevertheless, it's all fairly well done, with the excellent B:TAS cast coming back to fill many of the roles. While I do think both Mask of the Phantasm and Sub-Zero are probably better, it still serves as decent extension to the DCAU legacy.
When I first saw the trailer for this, I was expecting some pretty tacky, over-the-top violent nonsense. Given that David Leitch was involved, I was looking forward to a Christmas-themed John Wick experience. Unfortunately, what's out in theaters is quite the mess of a movie.
The plot is relatively straight-forward. The wealthy but dysfunctional Lightstone family is getting together for the holidays, when a group of robbers, led by John Leguizamo, decide to invade their house as caterers in an effort to steal a ton of money from a highly secure vault on Christmas Eve. Just at that moment, a very disgruntled Santa Claus (played by David Harbour), disenchanted by how much greed has taken over the Christmas season, sees the scared grand-daughter of the Lightstone family still believes in Santa, and then notices how all the bad guys are on his "naughty list," he decides to take matters into his hands and give them their just desserts.
Right off, the action is actually pretty solid, albeit quite gory (though that wasn't a surprise). You wouldn't think Santa wielding a sledgehammer would go so well together, but this movie makes it work. However, the problems happen when the movie decides to deviate from the action. First, we end up spending a little too much time with the Lightstone and their bargain-bin soap opera melodramatics. There's maybe one neat little twist towards the end, but it doesn't really change things much. Second, a subplot revolving around whether or not Santa still believes in Christmas drags things down. Sure, it's cute that he gets inspired by the hopes of a little girl, but it does feel like a low-rent Miracle on 34th Street knockoff. Even a potential interesting section that teases Santa's past gets cut short.
It's almost as if the creators didn't have enough conviction in their central idea and felt like they had to squeeze in all these other ideas. Maybe they're meant to be a parody of other Christmas films, but it's all played so straight, it just comes across as cheesy, and not in a good way. Harbour is definitely having fun, and Leguizamo hams it up pretty well, explaining how Christmas ruined his life. However, overall, it just ends up being rather unsatisfying. Maybe rent it for a lark, but otherwise, if the main gimmick didn't sell you, then you can safely pass on it.
As we're getting to the end of the year, you can expect a few more articles from me. While I don't think I'll be doing any kind of Top 5 or recap for movies (though Bullet Train really was the best of the year), I do plan on doing my regular recap of books I had read, as well as my Anticipated Films list for next year. I also have one other article that's close to being done that should come out before the end of the month. Otherwise, I hope you're all staying safe this holiday season, and if you're nice, then maybe you won't get a violent Kris Kringle showing up at your door!
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