One of the best things to come out of the first three X-Men movies was the casting of Hugh Jackman as the feral, adamantium clawed Wolverine. I was amazed at just how well Jackman embodied the look, attitude, and violence of one of Marvel’s most popular characters. While the trilogy’s final X-Men flick was an utter disappointment, Jackman never failed to be convincing. But even his personality and gravitas couldn’t save the mess that was “X-Men Origins: Wolverine”, a spin-off film intended to build on the success of the character. It was a wreck plagued by poor writing and poor execution.

But that disaster didn’t sink Jackman’s Wolverine adventure. Now four years later we have another attempt at giving us a good stand alone movie. It’s simply titled “The Wolverine” and let me start by saying it’s a considerably better film. In fact, it’s not only better, it’s a really good summer superhero flick anchored by a good story, fantastic action, and yet another great performance from Jackman. It’s a pleasant surprise that helps wipe the last unmitigated travesty from my memory.

“The Wolverine” takes our indestructible anti-hero to Japan, a place where (in comic book mythology) he has strong ties. Logan (Jackman) finds himself to be an emotional wreck. Driven by the pain of Jean Grey’s (Famke Janssen) death in “The Last Stand”, he lives in a secluded mountain cave, vowing to never hurt anyone again. But wouldn’t it be a boring movie if he kept that vow? Logan encounters a secretive Japanese woman named Yukio (Rila Fukushima) who convinces him to come to Japan to say goodbye to a dying past acquaintance. Once there he finds himself wrapped up in a web of family dysfunction, political corruption, and organized crime. With his healing powers mysteriously targeted, he finds himself vulnerable for the first time and threatened by an assortment of baddies.

The vast majority of the film takes place in Japan and it works wonderfully. The locations and environments look great and the setting and the story meld to perfection. It’s also helped by an array of interesting characters. Haruhiko Yamanouchi plays Logan’s old acquaintance Yashida, a billionaire technology mogul now on his deathbed. Svetlana Khodchenkova plays an American nurse hired to keep Yashida alive. The fantastic Japanese actor Hiroyuki Sanada plays Yashida’s son, a man knee-deep with mob ties. The beautiful Tao Okamoto is great as Yashido’s beloved granddaughter Mariko. Will Yun Lee is quite fun as Kenuichio Harada, a shadowy character with mixed motivations. Fanboys like me will recognize that name as the original Silver Samurai. Sadly this is a much different role but he’s still very good.

All of these characters flourish in a sharp and entertaining script that never loses sight of what it is. It perfectly utilizes Jackman’s abilities to channel a tortured soul mixed with a volatile and violent nature. He’s such a fascinating character. I also have to applaud the special touches brought by director James Mangold. Even when his handheld camera becomes a bit disorienting, he still gives the movie a beautiful visual flair. But as you know, Wolverine is all about the action. The fight scenes are great and there’s one particular chase sequence through the streets and shops of Tokyo that I really liked.

Yet while the action was very good, I never got past the feeling that Mangold was holding back. Obviously the studios wanted a PG-13 movie and I get that. But Wolverine’s special brand of action mixed with this particular story seemed to be begging for a grittier and more violent edge. And I have to mention that the movie does raise some pretty big questions in the final act. Questions based more on inconsistencies and gaps and logic. In other words, it had its share of head scratching moments. It also occasionally flirts with cliché yet thankfully never fully embraces it. Most importantly, none of these blemishes dampened my enjoyment of this film.

“The Wolverine” may have been lost in the shadows of bigger 2013 comic book movies such as “Iron Man 3” and “Man of Steel” but it deserves its place at the table. Jackman hasn’t lost a step and his charisma and physicality ooze from every scene. And unlike the earlier “Iron Man 3”, this felt more like a Marvel superhero experience – a great central character, an exciting story, some awesome action, and a mid-credits secret scene that instantly amped me up for what’s next. In other words, “The Wolverine” is a really good movie and one of the better surprises of the year.

VERDICT – 4 STARS

There’s one absolute in this modern movie age. It’s a certainty that goes unquestioned. Zombies always attract an audience. Hollywood loves zombies and it’s evident by the loads of flicks we get featuring the undead. We get zombie horror, zombie comedies, heck we even got a zombie teen romance picture earlier this year (here’s my shameless plug for my review of “Warm Bodies”). More than big superhero movies or the incessant raunchy comedies, zombies have proven to be a force in modern cinema.

So that brings us to the goofy titled “War War Z”. This strategically muted apocalyptic zombie film is loosely based on the novel by Max Brooks and stars golden boy Brad Pitt. In the film he plays Gerry Lane, a former United Nations worker and now full-time family man. While stuck in heavy downtown Philadelphia traffic with his wife Karin (Mireille Enos) and their two daughters, chaos breaks loose in the form of a deadly zombie pandemic. The film wastes absolutely no time thrusting us into the chaos. No overtelling of a origin and no deeply thought out structuring of the narrative. The story of “World War Z” begins in the most basic of ways but it’s very effective. We quickly see the threat, we learn of its massive scale, and the stakes are raised.

With world cities devastated and governments is disarray, humanity tries to put together some line of defense. Gerry reluctantly volunteers to help in exchange for protection for his family. One of the best things about Pitt’s character is that he avoids most of the common trappings. How many times in films like this have you seen lead characters suddenly become tough guy buttkickers? That never happens here. Gerry isn’t a military man and so often it’s soldiers escorting him through danger. Now that doesn’t mean he’s a wimp. In fact his intellect and instinct are often used to get out of some pretty tough spots. I liked the approach.

Plagued (pun intended) by setbacks and production delays, “World War Z” looked doomed to failure. Several rewrites and reshoots pushed the film back from its original December 2012 release date. But where that’s often a cause to worry, here it definitely was a plus. I had a blast with the film, more than I originally expected. It pulls elements of horror, big budget action, and clinical thrillers and mixes them together in what I found to be a highly entertaining experience. It doesn’t do anything to reinvent the wheel yet I did find it was able to develop its own look and feel while staying in familiar territory. One minute we are walking through creepy, dimly lit hallways and another moment we’re watching the infected invade cities via some amazing set pieces. Again, familiar stuff but wonderfully conceived.

Now there’s no denying that “World War Z” intentionally takes a very PG-13 approach to what could be a very R-rated story. Some will undoubtedly find fault with that and in some ways I can see their point. But there’s an impressive craftiness to how director Marc Forster realizes the film and I think it works. He also delivers some amazing visual sequences that are still swirling around in my head. Scenes which looked a bit questionable in the trailer actually translated well for me in the film and he maintains a crisp and fluid pace that I never found dull or lethargic.

I also have to get back to Pitt. He gives a very committed performance and he provides us with a character that never gives us cause to lose our rooting interest. He feels real and grounded which makes his circumstances all the easier for the audience to invest in. I found myself caring for him and for what happened to him and watching him navigate the dangers (sometimes surviving with luck that only a movie can provide) was made the more thrilling because if that.

Now I know some of my fellow horror brethren will cry foul because of the many things this movie dodges. I also know many will dog it for not breaking any new ground. I also have to say it’s one if the worst implementations of 3-D I’ve every seen. Talk about a pointless distraction. But there is something key that it does extremely well – something that is often times forgotten when it comes to making movies. I’m talking about storytelling. I found this to be intense, fun, and most importantly a well structured and well told story. It’s an easy movie for some folks to pick apart and honestly it does open itself up to that. But boy I had fun with this flick and as a zombie fan this was pure undead pleasure with just the right touch of humanity.

I took some ribbing but “World War Z” was one of my more anticipated films of 2013. I gotta say as months passed and the trailers hit the web my skepticism grew. But now it’s safe to say I feel vindicated. This is an honest and straightforward movie that’s certainly made for a broader audience. But I certainly don’t hold that against it especially when it grabs me and doesn’t let’s go. It’s simple escapist entertainment and it’s a fun reminder of why I go to the movies.

VERDICT – 4.5 STARS

2012 turned out to be a pretty solid year for animated features. My personal favorite was Frankenweenie, Tim Burton’s brilliant return to form. Pixar also had another solid entry with the warm-hearted Brave. But there was yet another animated feature that was wildly popular and that received critical acclaim and even an Oscar nomination. That movie is Wreck-it Ralph and it’s built around a brilliant idea that really grabbed my attention. Yet as with so many animated pictures, Wreck-it Ralph sets the table nicely but almost squanders it’s originality and cleverness with its frantic and occasionally numbing midsection. But that aside, it’s a movie with a lot of heart and a good message. You could do a lot worse.

What initially interested me in Wreck-it Ralph was the concept. As a guy who grew up on video games dating back to the earliest ones, I loved the idea of a story set in a video game world. Connected through power cables and surge detectors, all the arcade machines make up a cool and vibrant world behind their screens. Wreck-it Ralph’s pixelated landscape is filled with classic video game characters that old school gamers will enjoy recognizing. You’ll find Q-Bert, Bowser from Super Mario fame, characters from Street Fighter, Pac-Man, and many more. For me these were the best moments in the movie, when the film unveiled and introduced this fantastic world filled with nostalgic cameos and funny in-jokes.

The main character of the movie is Ralph (voiced by John C. Reilly). He’s the “bad guy” in the older but still popular Fix-it Felix, Jr. game which sits inside Litwak’s Arcade. Ralph has grown tired of the lack of appreciation and ostracism from his fellow workers in his game. Seeking to prove he can be a hero too, Ralph sets off to acquire a medal (something only reserved for heroes). But as he explores other games in the arcade’s community in search of the elusive medal, he inadvertently triggers a series of events that could lead to disaster especially for the world of a tasty kart-racing game called Sugar Rush.

Inside the Sugar Rush world Ralph meets a cute but obnoxious little girl named Vanellope (voiced by Sarah Silverman). She’s been ostracized by the people within her video game home mainly because she is so “glitchy” (something my fellow gamers will certainly get a kick out of). This common bond between Ralph and Vanellope develops into the film’s central relationship and it’s what keeps the movie from sinking into a mire of loud and repetitive slapstick.

Sugar Rush looks incredible and the blast of bright colors jump off the screen especially in high definition blu-ray. But it’s here where Wreck-it Ralph veers away from the cool video game angle it’s built on and instead makes candies and sweets the focus. Instead of Sonic the Hedgehog and Dig Dug we get taffy, lollipops, cough drops, oreo cookies, and diet cola. It won’t be a big deal for many but I was a little bummed at the shift away from what had drawn me to the picture. It was also here where the movie gets a little goofy and becomes an obvious reminder that it’s a kid’s film. The story begins to move as if it were on a hyperactive sugar rush and I kept wanting things to just calm down. But aside from that, the saving grace was the tender relationship between Ralph and Vanellope and despite its predictability I still found it pleasing. The relationship is built around some legitimate real-world feelings and I applaud the movie for tackling them in a respectful but also relatable way.

So while I liked Wreck-it Ralph and I would recommend it, it’ll still go down as a movie that didn’t see a good thing all the way through. Now I realize I’m not the film’s target audience and the two young kids I watched it with absolutely loved it. That’s says something and for that it deserves credit. It also has several funny moments, some spectacular animation, and a good message that revolves around a heartwarming relationship. I just wish it didn’t have that seemingly mandatory overly rambunctious middle section that is a staple of so many animated films today. With a little more of the movie’s early focus and a little less caffeine, this could been an even better picture.

For a look at another animated film of 2012, check out my review of the fantastic Frankenweenie.

Have you ever walked out of a theater after seeing a movie asking yourself “What on earth did I just watch?” That certainly sums up my initial reaction to “Warm Bodies”. Now I’ve watched a ton of zombie movies over the years but I can honestly say I’ve never seen one quite like this. This is actually a romance film (Yes, you read it right. It’s a romance film). It also features some good humor and throws in some horror elements as well. After all this is a zombie flick so you have to have horror, right? But the bigger question is how does it all come together and does it equal a fun and entertaining movie?

There are several uniquenesses that “Warm Bodies” throws out there. Perhaps the biggest is that the story is told from the zombies’ perspective. I mean let’s be fair, in our movies we’ve seen a countless number of zombies shot in the head, ran over by vehicles, chopped up by helicopter blades, and blown to bits by an assortment of explosives. Isn’t it time that we see things through their eyes? Don’t we all just want the voices of the zombies to be heard? Okay probably not but that’s what we get here and I have to admit I kinda liked it.

Right off the bat we’re introduced to a young zombie simply named “R” (Nicholas Hoult). Through narration he sets the table for us, laying out the post-zombie apocalypse landscape and describing what it’s like to be a walking corpse. He does have a level of consciousness. He tells us about his desire for simple things such as casual conversation and we see his affection for 80s and 90s pop rock tunes. All of this is laid out in a pretty humorous fashion and it gives R his own odd but entertaining personality. Like a worker getting through his workday, R and the other zombies go about the mundane daily grind of shuffling through the ruined outskirts of the city.

The inner-city is protected by a giant wall and that’s where the living call home. But even they need supplies so periodically a group of young people will go into the outskirts of the city to bring back food and medical needs. Julie (Teresa Palmer) leads her friends on one of the supply missions but they are attacked by a group of hungry zombies which includes R. It looks as if Julie and company are doomed but then R sees her. And in what plays out as an ‘I saw her across the dance floor’ type scene, R is instantly smitten and leads Julie to safety. Julie triggers something inside of R which begins to change him. Is true unwavering love the remedy to bring the zombies back to life. As goofy and cheesy as it sounds, that appears to be the case.

As wacky as it sounds the romance component between Hoult and Palmer works mainly because it’s laced with some really good humor. The absurdity of what we’re watching is actually fun thanks to some clever writing by Jonathan Levine and two committed lead performances. The movie works best when it keeps its focus on this. But the film tries to develop a big threat in the form of a group known as ‘the bonies’. The bonies are basically zombies who have deteriorated into ravenous skeletons. They turn out to be the real antagonists of the film which sets up a big climactic showdown at the city walls. The problem is none of this really worked for me. The bonies feel like a tacked on addition to the story and they take away from the movie’s real strengths. And then there is the CGI used to animate them. It’s really terrible. I know this isn’t meant to be a big special effects picture, but they should look a lot better than this.

But I would rather dwell on the positive and on how the filmmakers took something so preposterous and made it entertaining. There are several stand-out gags that I think are really funny and I appreciated the film’s originality. Now don’t let the zombie thing scare you off. This isn’t a scary or gory picture. It’s a spoof of the zombie movie craze wrapped up as a quirky romantic comedy. Still its hard to imagine this being everyone’s cup if tea and I doubt it has much staying power after a first viewing. But it’s still clever enough, creative enough, and funny enough to make it worth a watch.

VERDICT – 3 STARS