REVIEW: “Game Night”

September 24, 2018 by Keith Garlington

“Game Night” is a weird thing and watching it uncurl to reveal some semblance of an identity is one part fascinating and equal part frustrating. On one hand it’s a comedy with several hits and a handful of misses. But as its story unfolds a weirdly off-balanced action element surfaces that adds more blood and bullets but doesn’t always help the humor.

The creative duo of John Francis Daily and Jonathan Goldstein direct “Game Night” which is from a script by Mark Perez. The premise goes something like this: Max (Jason Bateman) and Annie (Rachel McAdams) are a perfect couple. They first met over a game of Trivial Pursuit and have held their own weekly game night since. Their usual guests include fellow married couple Kevin (Lamorne Morris) and Michelle Kylie (Bunbury), along with air-head Ryan (Billy Magnussen) and his fresh date-of-the-week.

Max’s good-looking and wildly successful older brother Brooks (Kyle Chandler) bulls into town and takes over game night for a week. Always looking to one-up his brother, Brooks stages an elaborate mystery game complete with role-playing, paid actors, and clues scattered across town. The first couple to solve the mystery gets the keys to his Corvette Sting Ray (which happens to be Max’s dream car).

Things get crazy when Brooks’ shady private life crosses paths with the game. Real thugs cross paths with fake ones and our not-so-bright players are caught in the middle. This obviously opens the door for the aforementioned action component which does tee the ball up for a couple of the film’s best scenes. A hysterical bullet removal sequence between McAdams and Bateman is a prime example. But the action, sometimes quite bloody, also clashes with the tone of other scenes.

Several other positives stood out. Jesse Plemons is the one consistently funny piece. He plays a stone-faced police officer and neighbor to Max and Annie. He’s found himself uninvited to the game nights due to his overtly weird and creepy personality. Plemons steals every scene he is in. I also can’t say enough about the comic timing of both Bateman and McAdams. Both work at just the right pitch and hold everything together even as things begin to unravel in the third act.

So “Game Night” has its moments. It’s only in the instances where Daily and Goldstein resort to their “Vacation” and “Horrible Bosses 2” days that the humor sours. But enough jokes land and its solid cast is committed enough to make this a fairly easy sell. Especially when compared to much of what passes as modern day comedy.

VERDICT – 3 STARS

REVIEW: “Prodigy” (2018)

September 17, 2018 by Keith Garlington

Horror and suspense movies have certainly gotten plenty of mileage out of eerie children with powers. You could probably list several films off the top of your head that have leaned heavily into this now common horror movie device. The sci-fi psychological thriller “Prodigy” joins the long list of movies who use creepy kids to unsettle their audiences.

While the idea is familiar, “Prodigy” works because of a key decision by co-writers and co-directors Alex Haughey and Brian Vidal. They place an unexpectedly heavy emphasis on human interactions, namely between child psychologist Dr. Fonda (Richard Neil) and 9-year-old Ellie (Savannah Liles). The film’s miniscule budget may play a role, but ultimately it’s this tighter more character-driven focus that makes this a success.

Dr. Fonda is summoned to a high-security facility by an old college friend Agent Olivia Price (Jolene Andersen). Once there he learns of Ellie, a supernaturally gifted young girl with a supreme intellect and a violent past. Ellie’s perceived sociopathic personality has led to her be deemed too big of a threat. She is scheduled to be executed and dissected for study. Despite the cynicism of her colleagues Olivia still has hope for the Ellie and Dr. Fonda is her last resort.

Haughey and Vidal boil up a good amount of tension as Fonda tries to break through Ellie’s cast iron exterior to find the humanity in the ‘monster’. Ellie expects the same contentious back-and-forth as with other doctors she has mentally chewed up and spat out. But Dr. Fonda throws her off with his open mind and unwillingness to judge her based on a case file. The cold and disconcerting Ellie is hesitant and confrontational. But if Fonda can break through he may just save her life.

We get a handful of supporting characters who are all convinced pulling the plug is the right move. None believe the unkept and unconventional Dr. Fonda can make a dent in Ellie’s tough psyche. This is also where the movie’s biggest weaknesses shows through. Outside of Olivia none of the supporting characters have any depth whatsoever. Most are caricatures rather than authentic and interesting, not to mention a couple of the performances are pretty rough. It brings things down a notch.

“Prodigy” still manages to be a thoughtful and suspenseful thriller and does so despite its small scale and even smaller budget. I mean practically the entire film takes place in two rooms. But that shouldn’t scare you away. It manages its strengths well plus it features an outstanding performance from young Savannah Liles. Give it a look.

VERDICT – 3.5 STARS

REVIEW: “The Strangers: Prey at Night”

September 11, 2018 by Keith Garlington

I liked the 2008 horror-thriller “The Strangers”. It was essentially a slasher film but with an emphasis on atmosphere and tension over the traditional gore galore. And I found something a bit creepy and unsettling about the randomness at the core of the terror. It was a knife-twisting home invasion flick with enough craft to cover its handful of flaws. That certainly isn’t the case for its sequel.

It took ten years to get a sequel but it’s hard to believe they spent more than 10 days conceiving it. “The Strangers: Prey at Night” is a paper-thin follow-up that neither captures what I enjoyed about the first film nor offers anything remotely new. In fact it barely seems to try. It hurriedly thrusts its small and underdeveloped cast into the sites of the killers and expects us to care. I certainly did not.

The film starts with the all-too-familiar tag ‘Based on True Events’, but it is so in the slightest sense. Series creator and sequel co-writer Bryan Bertino stated that inspiration came from the Manson Family murders mixed with a string of neighborhood robberies from his childhood. You can see shades of that in the first film. “Prey at Night” doesn’t show much inspiration at all.

Story-wise this is all we get: Cindy (Christina Hendricks) and husband Mike (Martin Henderson) set off on a family weekend with their two detached teens. The idea is to spend time together before their angst-filled daughter Kinsey (Bailee Madison) is shipped off to boarding school. Her older brother Luke (Lewis Pullman) is caught in the middle of the parents/daughter bickering.

This not-so-happy lot drive to their aunt and uncle’s trailer park campground. Too bad for them the only people they find are Dollface, Pin Up Girl, and the Man in the Mask (yes, they actually have names. I had to look it up to make sure). Your run-of-the-mill terror and mayhem ensues. I think the idea is that the family is pulled closer together throughout the ordeal, but the movie doesn’t seem too interested in all that character stuff. Instead we get scene after scene of various family members in peril, slowly opening doors, slowly walking down hallways, slowly rounding corners, etc. But fear not, they run around a lot too.

While watching “Prey at Night” one word repeatedly came to mind – flat. That describes nearly every facet of this movie. The one remotely impressive scene is a swimming pool sequence. In it we get some clever camera work and a welcomed bit of genuine tension. Otherwise the movie is a wash of reprocessed horror gimmicks which we’ve all seen over and over. I guess ten years wasn’t long enough to put together a good second installment.

VERDICT – 1.5 STARS

REVIEW: “Proud Mary” (2018)

September 7, 2018 by Keith Garlington

From the opening credits you get a good sense of what “Proud Mary” would like to be. 70’s text effects with bursts of retro yellows and oranges all to the sounds of “Papa Was a Rollin’ Stone” by the Temptations. But the promise of a modern blaxploitation entry turns into a tease and “Proud Mary” goes off into much more conventional and predictable territory.

A hitwoman who goes by the name Mary (Taraji P. Henson) takes out a target only to discover he has a young son Danny (Jahi Di’Allo Winston). A year passes and a guilt-ridden Mary keeps tabs on Danny from a distance. He has become a runner for an abusive Boston mobster named Uncle (Xander Berkeley). When Mary finds Danny passed out in an alley her motherly instincts meet her professional killer skills. She secretly takes Danny in and offers up her own special brand of retribution on Uncle.

Mary’s compassionate but impulsive actions inadvertently starts a gang war within the Boston underbelly. She hides her deeds from her mob kingpin mentor Benny (Danny Glover) and his headstrong son Tom (Billy Brown). But keeping things a secret proves to be a tall order especially with Tom (her persistent ex-lover) growing more suspicious. As you can probably guess Mary finds herself in quite the pickle.

“Proud Mary” is a bit of a whirlwind that manages to be both entertaining and disappointing. On the one hand you have Taraji Henson who has the look, attitude, and physicality for this role. She is able to have several good moments in spite of the script which doesn’t always serve her well. Also, you can see the framework for a much better movie, enough to keep things from getting boring.

That leads to the other hand. While I was invested throughout the brisk 88-minute running time, the movie never seems to get out of first gear. Even the action lacks any real punch. Other odd decisions stand out. Several weird edits especially in the first half are hard to figure out. And there are some odd tonal jolts, none bigger than the film’s big action climax with Tina Turner’s rendition of the title song blaring. It doesn’t click.

And getting back to what I said earlier, the story is woefully too conventional and predictable. A new flavor of blaxploitation for modern audiences is something I could get behind. I can’t deny the allure of “Leon: The Professional” meets “Foxy Brown”. “Proud Mary” has the ingredients for it. Unfortunately it goes the more obvious route and suffers for it.

VERDICT – 2.5 STARS

REVIEW: “Searching” (2018)

September 4, 2018 by Keith Garlington

There was a time when I didn’t pay much attention to John Cho the actor. His “Harold & Kumar” comedies never landed with me and I was even less impressed with his “American Pie” work. He’s fine in the rebooted “Star Trek” series but not exactly a standout. That all changed with his stellar performance in last year’s soulful character drama “Columbus”.

In “Searching” Cho is handed an even meatier role and he doesn’t disappoint. He plays David Kim, a widowed father of 16-year-old Margot (Michelle La). To David everything seems right with his daughter. She is a happy girl with lots of friends who enjoys piano lessons and attends study groups with classmates. But David is living in a bubble brought on by his own grief. His image of Margot slowly comes into question after she disappears without a trace.

David files a missing person’s report and Detective Rosemary Vick is assigned to the case. She handles the ground investigation and tasks David with searching for Margot’s digital footprints. This feeds the film’s big trick – every scene is through some form of digital communication. Skype, Facebook, YouTube, FaceTime, video conferencing, streaming services, security cameras, news feeds, etc. The entire movie is shot within this digital framing.

Director Aneesh Chaganty (who also co-wrote the script with Sev Ohanian) deserves a ton of credit for not only keeping things coherent but also steadily ramping up the tension. It’s a tricky storytelling mechanic that comes across as much more than a gimmick. I wouldn’t go as far as to call it the found footage model for the modern era, but it has the same satisfying effect as the earliest found footage movies.

If you’ve seen the trailer you get an idea of how the story is pieced together. With the bulk of the action taking place on a laptop or smartphone screen, it takes some crafty direction and snappy editing to pull it off. Equally impressive is how the movie never tips its hand. David trails a smattering of clues throughout Margot’s digital profile leading to several red herrings and a few meaningful revelations. But it isn’t until the finale when things are spelled out for us, perhaps a little too neatly, but still with good effect.

“Searching” is a fantastic debut effort for Chaganty who gives us more than a simple gimmick film. It’s a riveting thriller with interesting things to say about the online lives we live. It’s also another showcase for John Cho who carries the film through his character’s intensifying stages of emotion and desperation. I was wrong to shortchange the guy. Cho is a legitimate leading actor who earns the praise he has been receiving.

VERDICT – 4 STARS

REVIEW: “Crazy Rich Asians”

September 3, 2018 by Keith Garlington

When I first saw the title “Crazy Rich Asians” I couldn’t figure out if it was an ill-advised (and cringe-worthy) attempt at racial humor or an inside joke aimed at those within the culture. Turns out I was overthinking things and neither are entirely true. “Crazy Rich Asians” is based on Kevin Kwan’s 2013 novel of the same name. Kwan told Daily Beast “I wanted to introduce a contemporary Asia to a North American audience.” Short, simple and sweet.

This surprise hit of the summer is directed by John Chu from a screenplay written by Peter Chiarelli and Adele Lim. At its core “Crazy Rich Asians” is a satirical basting of the culture of excess and decadence. Chu doesn’t hold back in highlighting the lavish lifestyles of his subjects. It is extravagance to the extreme. But at the same time the movie sports a ton of something I wasn’t expecting – heart.

Things start fast and a little shaky. Within just a couple of scenes we are introduced to an New York University economics professor named Rachel (Constance Wu) who is invited by her longtime boyfriend Nick (Henry Golding) to travel to Singapore to attend a wedding and meet his family. When they board the plane and are ushered to the swanky first class section, Rachel learns Nick’s big secret. He comes from a very wealthy family. And I mean they are loaded.

“Crazy Rich Asians” feels pretty familiar right out of the gate. As Rachel is introduced to Nick’s broad assortment of pampered family members and friends we see the movie bend towards some rather routine romantic comedy tropes and character types. A couple of supporting characters dance dangerously close to overkill in their roles as comic relief.

But there is a subtle shift after the opening act that moves the film into more dramatic territory while maintaining a measured sense of humor. This is where my perception of “Crazy Rich Asians” changed and it began to reel me in. While romance is at its heart, it also deals with class-based and cultural biases, traditionalism, etc. Much of this is channeled through Nick’s mother Eleanor (Michelle Yeoh). She could easily be portrayed as a paper-thin codger, but she has actual depth and her cold-hearted obstinance is rooted in personal experiences from her past.

Several other supporting characters bring different perspectives to the story. Gemma Chan plays Astrid, a close cousin of Nick’s, quiet and proper but with her own set of upper-class troubles. One the other end of the spectrum is Peik Lin (played by Awkwafina). She’s an old friend of Rachel’s who lives with her parents in Singapore. Her goofy and eccentric personality is almost too much but she is dialed back at just the right time.

“Crazy Rich Asians” is a Cinderella story of sorts but with a cruel edge to it. Amid its unbridled opulence and glamorous eye-candy is a nasty center which gives the movie a bite. Rachel faces pretty harsh backlash from some of Nick’s more unaccepting kin. She’s targeted for her social status, meager upbringing, and nationality among other things. Chu deftly handles these various shades of bigotry, never allowing them to swallow up the fun and humor while giving them the sting they should have. It’s one of several things the film offers that you rarely see out of this genre.

“Crazy Rich Asians” doesn’t reinvent the romantic comedy or stretch it in any new directions. The ‘fish out of water’, ‘meet the parents’, and ‘rags meets riches’ story elements have been done many times before. This film simply does them better. The fashion porn, food porn, jewelry porn, real estate porn, party porn, it’s all fun. The eye-popping Singapore skylines are beautifully shot. But what sets this movie apart is its heart and the undeniable human element it never loses sight of.

The all-Asian cast has been a huge point of praise and it’s definitely a stride forward for Hollywood. But what does it say about American moviegoers? There are many great movies with all-Asian casts. They simply require us to look beyond our self-made boundaries to discover them. So just maybe “Crazy Rich Asians” will not only inspire a change in Hollywood, but also with the way some audiences watch movies.