The Art Of Getting By (2011) – A Film Review by Mike D

                           

This is a review I wrote back in 2011 when I was writing for BacklotD.  The movie came up recently in a discussion with a new friend and I figured I would share it with you.  This will also give you a glimpse of what my writing skills used to be and what you can look forward to.

Remember those fun loving teen angst filled 80’s movies about people forgetting about your birthday, skipping school and Saturday detention?  Clearly writer/director Gavin Wiesen does because he has delivered a brilliant 21^st century version that John Hughes himself would doff his cap to.

Wiesen gives us George (Freddie Highmore), an intelligent and artistically gifted high school senior who just can seem to care about anything.  He feels that since we are all going to die at some point nothing until that end has any meaning.

George’s mother (played wonderfully by Rita Wilson) and teachers just don’t know what to do with or for George.  It goes so far that George’s principal (played very credibly by Blair Underwood) gets involved and things get pretty serious pretty quickly.  Ultimatums are given, lines are drawn.

Enter new friend and love interest Sally (Emma Roberts) and George is no longer a loner.  Through Sally, George meets more friends and gets a feel for being part of a social circle.  He even finds himself Dustin, a former student at George’s high school who is impressed with George and decides to mentor him.

This movie really delivers with realism and honesty.  The emotions and situations depicted in this film are true to real life and easy for the audience to relate to, even if you are not a teenager.  George’s mom and step father struggle with careers and the tough economic times as well as with the challenges of the non nuclear family. Wiesen does a great job of bringing us the perspective of the other characters besides George.

This movie is NOT preachy.  It is NOT self indulgent.  It is raw, edgy and gritty.  This is shown in every aspect of the film from the dialogue to the scenery and even the style in which it was shot.  This film is a case study of what life is like, or at least FEELS like in 2011. 

It is praiseworthy to not how Wiesen gives this perspective for not only our main character, George, but also for his friends, parents and teachers as well.  No aspect of this story or George’s world was ignored.

Life is hard.  Love is hard, especially when you are young and experiencing things for the first time.  It can feel like you are trying to navigate your way through a never ending mine field with no map or guide.  Sometimes you get kicked in the gut and don’t know if the pain will ever stop. Sometimes you are just treading water. 

This is Gavin Wiesen’s full length feature directorial debut and he delivers in Spades.  It is charming and brilliant and most definitely worth your time and money.  Besides, if it is good enough for John Hughes it is good enough for us.

Joss VS "Empire"

I was checking out moviepilot.com and saw a headline that immediately grabbed my attention.  "Joss Whedon has a problem with 'the Empire Strikes Back'" Just shouted click me click me!  So I did.  Turns out the author of the piece, Alisha Grauso was informing us that there is a 10 page interview with Joss Whedon in this week's EW (entertainment Weekly) and Joss says he has a problem with the fact that most people pick "Empire" as the best of the Original Trilogy.

Why, you might ask?  Apparently because Joss feels the film is incomplete.  It is incomplete because it doesn't really end.  Says Joss," 'Empire’ committed the cardinal sin of not actually ending. Which at the time I was appalled by and I still think it was a terrible idea."  

Joss elaborates: "Well, it’s not an ending. It’s a Come Back Next Week, or in three years. And that upsets me. I go to movies expecting to have a whole experience. If I want a movie that doesn’t end I’ll go to a French movie. That’s a betrayal of trust to me. A movie has to be complete within itself, it can’t just build off the first one or play variations."

Do I agree with Joss?  I do agree that it did not have a concise, definitive ending.  I was/am not appalled by it nor do I consider it a betrayal of trust.  I understand that Joss was being hyperbolic as he is prone to do.  

I do not agree that it needed to be complete and within itself because it was designed to be a part of what was to come.  I understand that Episode IV can stand alone but it truly and honestly isn't complete, the destroying of the death star is not the end of the story, the end of VI was when the Sith were destroyed and balance was restored to the universe.

It is a "come back next week or in three years" but it was designed to be.  Lucas was heavily influenced by the serial style story telling and intended the Star Wars films to be chapters in a larger story.  I think that the "cliff hanger" ending to "Empire" was compelling and I was ok with waiting for "Jedi" to conclude the story.

i'm first in line forever and always to throw stones at Lucas, figuratively speaking of course.  In general I don't disagree with Joss but in this case I think I am going to have to.  There is no flag on this play Joss.  I respect you and your opinions and I see where you are coming from but I just don't feel that it is a fair critique in this case.

If you want to check out more work by Alisha just click on this link and away you go:  http://moviepilot.com/Alisha

Gathr Film Series

Are you looking for the best in indie films?  Would you like to see them before places like New York or LA?  Lucky for you there is the Maple Theater in Bloomfield Hills.  There is a new film screened every week.  You can buy either a 1 month or 3 month subscription.  The 1 month will cost you $19 (less than $5 per film) and the 3 month will cost you $49 (a little more than $4 per film).

They did a great job remodeling the theater so not only will you see cool new indie films but you will see them in style!  Check out the web site for more info:  http://gathr.us/series/bloomfield-previews.

Also, you can check http://filmobsession.com/ for free passes!  I recently saw "The Trials of Muhammad Ali" via Film Obsession at the Maple for the Gathr series and I saw a very good film and had a great time doing it, win/win!!!!!

The Trials of Muhammad Ali – A Film Review by Mike D

The Trials of Muhammad Ali – A Film Review by Mike D

Greatness is not easy.  Greatness is tested and greatness must persevere.  In this case we are talking about the “greatest of all time,” Muhammad Ali.  With The Trials of Muhammad Ali, documentary film maker Bill Siegel delivers a heavyweight look into the literal and figurative trials that helped define Ali’s life and career.

Siegel eases us into the story by showing us 18 year old Cassius Marcellus Clay winning the gold medal at the 1960 Olympics.  Through clips of interviews with Clay himself and his family we see he was a good young man who loved to box.  Clay would turn pro and set his sights on becoming the heavyweight champion of the world.

In 1964, Clay accomplished his goal.  Clay had been courted by the Nation of Islam (NOI) for a few years but had not been granted membership.  Clay had met Malcom X (in Detroit) and was also inspired by the song “A White Man’s Heaven is a Black Man’s Hell” by Louis Farrakhan.  He became increasingly enthralled with the NOI’s message of segregation and the importance of ending the white man’s power over the black man. 

Why did the Nation’s message take such a hold of the young Clay?  The movie doesn’t really address it and that is a shame because it would be fascinating to know.  Not providing that info did not diminish the quality of the narrative but the inclusion of it would only have made it better.  The movie made it quite clear though that neither Clay’s parents nor the members of his management team (11 white businessmen from his home town of Louisville) had the champ’s ear any longer.

Clay was officially admitted into the NOI and initially had his name initially changed to Cassius X.  Soon after that the leader of the NOI, Elijah Muhammad announced that Clay’s new name would be Muhammad Ali.  This is when his first trial would begin, his trial of public opinion.

His name change really riled up a lot of feathers.  Many reporters and announcers didn’t use his new name and some outright refused to call him Muhammad Ali.  Ali made it worse by adopting a “white man is the devil” approach.  There is a powerful clip of Ali appearing on the David Frost Show and calling Frost the devil to his face. 

There were a lot of clips of former NOI members talking about their memories of Ali and their role in his life.  The documentary gives the impression that although Ali did believe in what he was doing, he sure seemed like he was being led by the NOI and that they were using him, being such a public figure, to promote their agenda.

The fact is, this first trial of his, the trial in the court of public opinion will go on for as long as he is alive, probably even after.  He evoked such strong emotions and opinions from people, both for and against, that it will be a topic discussed for years to come.  The fact is though, the man changed his name so who among us has the right to tell the man no?  You may not like his in your face style but at the end of the day, isn’t it up to him what he wants to be called?

In 1966 Ali’s second trial began, this one literal.  Ali was drafted into the U.S. Army to fight in the Vietnam War.  Ali refused to go, claiming “no Vietcong ever called me nigger.”  Ali, through interviews stated clearly he would not fight in the “white man’s war.” 

He requested to be considered a conscientious objector, claiming that the Qur’an prohibits a Muslim from fighting in a war that is not declared by Allah.  The court felt that he was objecting to the war based on racial grounds and not religious and therefore denied his request and ordered him to report for service.  He refused and was sentenced to 5 years in Jail and a $10,000 fine.  Coincidentally, this would have been the same punishment served as his spiritual mentor Elijah Muhammad.  Ali’s case went all the way to the United States Supreme Court.

This trial really infuriated people.  Jackie Robinson said,” He made American money but he won’t fight for America?”  Boxing legend Joe Louis said,” He doesn’t deserve the honor to be called champion.”  Ali was not only stripped of his title but his boxing licenses were revoked. 

Ali goes on the lecture circuit where he really refines his public speaking ability. He always had a natural charisma and larger than life personality but the movie seems to indicate that this is where he polished those skills and is where he really learned how to truly captivate people with not only what he said but HOW he said it.

One of the things this film does really well, which is very important for documentaries, is that it presents the information to you and allows you to formulate your own opinion.  The truth is that this film does leave a little on the plate so to speak, it leaves you wanting to know more.  You have to remind yourself that this is NOT a full biopic on Ali, merely a focus on his trials.

The fact is, as Ali’s daughter Hana put it, Muhammad Ali should be considered the 8^th Wonder of the World.  He is larger than life and in fact his legacy will live much many generations past him.  There is no way any film could satiate on such a hearty subject but for the narrow focus of The Trials of Muhammad Ali, Bill Siegel delivers a complete gem.

I would give this film 4 out of 5 stars.  It entertains, educates and promotes discussion, everything you could ask for in a documentary.

You can check out a shnazzier version of this review, along with other reviews, give-a-ways and free movie passes at http://filmobsession.com/movie/review-the-trials-of-muhammad-ali/.

Who should play Wonder Woman?

Screenrant.com did a piece on who could/should play the iconic role of Wonder Woman in the upcoming (2017) Justice League movie.  I'm going to share my thoughts on their strongest choices and then offer one of my own. The thing about Wonder Woman is that she is intelligent, strong and beautiful so clearly an actress would have to be all three things as well.

Their List:
1)  Morena Baccarin who is known for her role as Inara the companion from Firefly.  There she excelled at displaying exotic beauty and intelligence and was a strong female character.  She is also quite beautiful and strong in her current role on the hugely successful Homeland.  She is a very good choice and has many positive qualities that she would bring to the character but I think the biggest drawback is that she is not so physically imposing and I am not sure how believable she would be as a butt kicking super hero.  Also, she might be too big of a name and people might see too much of her and not enough of Wonder Woman.

2) Gina Carano who is a former MMA fighter and american Gladiator turned actress.  She is physically imposing and a legitimate butt kicker.  She is smoking hot and looks like a believable Amazon.  Her acting leaves a little something to be desired though.  She was adequate in the 2011 film Haywire where she played an assassin.  Her delivery of lines was very monotone and dry and I question whether she could show enough emotional vulnerability that comes along with Wonder Woman as well.  Out of all the candidates she physically is the most believable Wonder Woman but her limited acting skills I think are a bit too limited.  I really hope she doesn't read this because she would kick my ass in no time flat.

3)  Jaimie alexander who played Lady Sif in Thor and will reprise that role in the upcoming sequel Thor: The Dark World.  She plays a warrior and did a great job in the first Thor film.  She is a close friend of Thor and gets instant credibility by being able to fight side by side with him.  From what I hear she will have an even bigger role in the sequel.  The problem here is that she is already associated with being another super hero and that might hinder the audiences ability to take her seriously as Wonder Woman.  Ryan Renolds struggled with the transition from Deadpool to Green Lantern.  There was even concern about Chris Evans playing Captain America since he had already played the Human Torch Johnny Storm.  Obviously it worked out well for Evans but it took Joss Whedon's writing and a great ensemble cast to solidify that.  His first role as Cap in Captain America: The First Avenger was rough.

They have 4 more candidates but you can check out the link at the end of the post to see the rest of their options.  I would like to share my choice for you now.

Drum roll please, my choice to play Wonder Woman in the upcoming Justice League movie and/or TV show if they can ever get their act together is..................Olivia Munn!  Yes, you read correctly, the current co-star of HBO's The Newsroom is my choice to play Wonder Woman.  She has the exotic beauty, she has shoulder length jet black hair and could easily grow it out to play the iconic hero and she has an amazing body and would look absolutely phenomenal in the costume.  From her time on Attack of the Show and The Daily Show we see she has the intelligence and the humor to bring to the role.  She has enough geek cred where the audience would totally accept her as Wonder Woman but she isn't so well known that she would over shadow the character.

As Sloan Sabbith on The Newsroom she shows us that she can be a physically imposing presence and psychologically intimidate people as well.  Conversely she also displays a completely credible emotionally vulnerable side which is a part of Wonder Woman as well.  The show is 10 episodes per season and are all shot at once so I'm sure she could be available for shooting a Wonder Woman project.

Well, what do you think of my choice?  do you think one of Screen Rant's choices are better?  Do you have a choice of your own that you think would be best?  Please leave a comment to let me know.

You can check out Screen Rant's other choices here: http://screenrant.com/wonder-woman-movie-actresses-justice-league/.

(Wishing I were) Oblivious to Oblivion

I just watched the movie Oblivion starring Tom Cruise and it was just plain awful.  It is strange because the movie actually has a lot of elements that should have made it a very enjoyable post-apocalyptic sci-fi film but it just fell flat.  I was actively rooting for the film to be over and when it indeed was over I felt a sense of relief.  Not relief as in plot resolution rather relief from the fact that I no longer had to watch it.

The main problem with the film was the first hour.  There was wayyyyyyyyyyy too much exposition, minimum half an hour too much of it.  Also the film just didn't give us much besides Tom Cruise flying around in a really cool ship and coming home to a stepford-esque mission partner.  I was bored to tears.  Did it help that I was coming down from a really nice wine buzz?  No.  Did it create the problem?  No.  The director Joseph Kosinski is at fault for dragging out the film for so long that by the time the real action kicked in and the significant plot points were revealed I just simply didn't care anymore.  This is no surprise as Koinski's most notable work pryor to this was Tron: Legacy which also was weak in plot and in general all sizzle and no steak.

Normally the eye candy can help in a situation like this but not even a naked Andrea Riseborough swimming in a clear pool helped all that much.  I was looking forward to Olga Kurylenko (Quantum of Solace) but she added absolutely nothing to the film and didn't even come close to saving it for me.  At least Andrea got naked and made some effort!

And Seriosly Kosinski, how are you going to have the King Slayer himself, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau (Jamie Lannister from HBO's Game of Thrones) and have him have such an insignificant part.  Use your resources man, you had Morgan Freeman for crying out loud and you turned him into a cheap Morpheus rip off.  I seriously though he was going to offer Tom Cruise's character a choice between a red and blue pill at any moment.

On a scale from 1 to five with 1 being catch it on cable and 5 being full price in the theaters, I give it 1.5/5 stars and that is only on the condition that you skip the first 45 minutes and catch up from there.  That's why I wish I would have been oblivious to Oblivion.

AMC Theaters: Doing It Right!

AMC Theaters aren't just good, they are good for you.  Especially if you have a special needs child. AMC has a wonderful program called Sensory Friendly Films where kids are encouraged to get up and dance,walk, shout or sing!  This program is run in conjunction with the Autism Society of America.

The program provides a special opportunity for families to enjoy their favorite films in a safe and accepting environment. The auditoriums dedicated to the program have their lights up, the sound turned down so the children and their families are free to enjoy the movie as they want/need to.  

This is a nationwide program and we are fortunate to have three participating theaters in the Metro Detroit Area:  The AMC Forum 30, AMC Gratiot 21 and the AMC Livonia 20.

The program run approximately once a month.  The next showing is The Smurfs 2.  According to AMC's web site, all showings are at 10a.m. local time.  For more information on this program, please go to http://www.amctheatres.com/programs/sensory-friendly-films.

There are many choices for going to the movies but I think this is a pretty good reason to give AMC Theaters a shot, especially if you have not already.

Sunday evening programming musings on a Monday afternoon

So I am heading into my viewing of Sunday night shows and just wanted to share my feelings with you on what I am about to watch.  this isn't a recap, just expression.  I'm going to talk about each show in order of interest, from lowest to highest.

Falling Skies.  The season is almost over and I have had a difficult time getting excited about this show this season.  It feels very disjointed to me and it is dragging on a bit.  It has entered shit or get off the pot territory.  The truth is I enjoyed last week's flash back/alternate reality/alien torture thing they did with Tom Mason but it was really strange.  as a stand alone episode it would have been great but with a 10 episode season to dedicate a whole episode pretty much to that is excessive and slows the development of the plot.  Bad guys want to know where you are attacking, got it.  He hasn't gone back to lead the "new America," they have done nothing with finding out who the other spy is, even though we already know it is Lourdes (and how they haven't figured out it is her is beyond me) and Anne and the baby are still missing (I know they were discovered at the end of last week's episode but by then I almost didn't care anymore).  I'm not saying the show has jumped the shark or anything, I just don't know how much more it has in the tank.  I kind of hope they defeat the aliens once and for all and the show shifts its focus to people rebuilding societies.

Continuum.  I'm guessing most of you reading this have either not heard of this show or don't watch it.  It is Canadian Science Fiction and airs on the Showcase channel.  It is about a law keeper who travels back from the future (2077) to present time in order to catch terrorists who have been convicted and sentenced to death but escape to change the past.  The  truth is I only started watching it because it stars Rachel Nichols (the green roommate who was hooking up with Kirk in Star Trek 2009 and Scarlett from G.I. Joe: Rise of COBRA).  she is one of my main celebrity crushes so even though it is not that great of a show, it has one of my main squeezes and although it is cheesy and Canadian, it is still Science Fiction.

Copper.  You can check out more info on the show here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copper_(TV_series).  The show caught my attention first because it is on BBC America and I LOVE BBC America.  It also sounded pretty interesting, a show about police work well before modern technology.  Also the dealing with the racial issues from the time is quite fascinating since black people were free in the north but were still not accepted by many as equals.  There is a black doctor of medicine on the show who despite his status as an educated healer, is still sometimes treated as a lower class citizen by people who are beneath him!

Season 1 focused on Detective Corcoran finding out what happened to his wife (had an affair and crazy) and child (dead).  Now it is more just focusing on their attempts to clean up the Five Points, one of the worst and toughest places in all of New York.  Last week's episode kicked it up a notch when we find out that Corcoran's former best friend and fellow detective who he thought had become a murdering villain was really working undercover and they will have to work together once again.  This should be good news but his former friend, Francis Maguire is the one who cheated with Corcoran's wife while he was away fighting in the Civil War.

True Blood.  I like what they are doing on the show.  I like how they are developing Warlow and Sookie's relationship.  I like how they are showing that the humans can have the upper hand on the vampires.  I love everything they do with Jason Stackhouse.  I'm curious what is going to happen though now that Billith killed the Governor and seemingly averted the mass vampire murder he had a vision of previously.  I thought that would last the whole season, I thought wrong.  I really like how they are showing that vampires can be more human than humans can.  The scene with Jessica and the other vampire in the copulation study chamber showed that.  Mrs. Newlan orchestrated Jessica being in there to punish Jason.  The vampire they put in with Jessica refused to have sex with Jessica because he could see she didn't want to and he would not rape her.  It is hard for me to watch it a little bit, these scenes in the vampire prison camps because they remind me very much of the Nazi camps and how their scientists treated Jews as specimens with little to no regard for them.  I love how Eric and Pam didn't fight and kicked some ass together.  They are giving Andy some really tender moments with his remaining daughter.  The scene where she asks for a name and he gives her one was touching.  It started off as schtick with all of the fairy daughters but now that there is only one it is getting more emotionally real.  Very much looking forward to seeing where this season is going.

Dexter.  This show is getting deep.  We are really getting to the core of who Dexter is and what we can expect for his future.  For one of the few times on the show last week Dexter got outsmarted by another killer.  The other psychopath showed he was someone at least on Dexter's level and got the jump on him.  We got to see that even though Dr. Vogel, the one who helped create him, keeps trying to keep him boxed in as a garden variety psychopath but Dexer continues to prove he truly is unique.  Dexter couldn't understand how the other killer could use his father as cover and leave him without a second thought because Dexter is so close with Deb and couldn't imagine ever doing that to her, that is BEFORE she tried to kill the both of them by driving the car into a lake.  It's fascinating how Harry killed himself because of his role in creating Dexter and it seems Deb is heading down that road also, except she might be willing to go the extra mile, to go where their dad couldn't and actually try and put Dexter down.  vogel is playing games but Deb is distressed.

I don't know why they continue to make Angel a douche bag but as long as Quinn keeps screwing his sister Jamie and we get to see her naked and going at him like a bunny on speed, I'm good.  still not sure if Quinn and Deb are going to be romantic or not but it is nice that they each have someone to watch their backs.  Even in its 8th season this show is keeping me guessing and I am enjoying the hell of this final season.

The Newsroom.  I would call this Aaron Sorkin's masterpiece but I honestly think that every time he creates a new show.  This show is one of the best shows on television, period.  The writing is top level, the characters are compelling and the story lines come right of reality.  I have watched the first two episodes of the second (and current) season multiple times and I can't wait to finish this post and start watching.

It is really great to see Don BEING a good guy instead of everyone talking about how good of a guy he is.  The way he handled the situation with Maggie was classy.  The way he handled the Troy Davis story in last week's episode was compelling.  I like the fact that Sorkin kept Don in as one of the main characters and we are already seeing why.

I also really like how he set up the long game in the first episode of the season which starts about 14 months or so after the events of season one.  There is a black Op called Genoa that apparently ACN reports on and might not be accurate about.  We see a few of the characters getting interviewed by a lawyer and it gets us off to the races.  Maggie enters the room with short, orange/red hair and looking hideous.  Will explains that something happened in Africa and the lawyer would sit in a room and cry if it had happened to her.

So we learn that one of the main story lines will be the Genoa story.  We know that Maggie goes to Africa and some shit goes down.  We learn that Occupy Wall Street will be a major story as well (one that Neal chases).

Even though there have only been 2 episodes, Sorkin already has established that he will continue with his patented back and forth story telling. It can be a little off-putting at first but once you calibrate you will be fine.

There is as much focus on relationships as ever and boy are they fun!  Everything from the simple yet fun interactions between Sloan and Charlie to the complex and difficult between Mckenzie and Will.  will is softening up though and is much kinder to her this season.  He isn't ready to forgive and forget yet but we are really seeing a more human side to Will and that is letting him get closer to her.  Maggie and Don are done and Maggie wants things to go back to normal with Jim but Jim didn't like normal.  Lisa finds out about the Sex and the City bus incident and now Jim and Lisa are done and Lisa and Maggie are simply roommates.

Jim has gone on the road with Romney to get away from Maggie and Maggie is consequently looking to go to Africa to get away as well, even though it is clearly her damned fault.  There is a new character, Hallie (played by Meryl Streep's daughter) who is on the road with Jim and passive/aggressively shows interest in him, or at least in what is going on with his life.  She is much more his type than Maggie so we are rooting for her.  sloan befriends Maggie and that is nice to see but once sloan and don start dating we'll see how long that friendship lasts.

Finally, Sorkin's use of music continues to be perfectly on point.  sorkin seriously is a genius when it comes to A)picking really good music and B) really good music that tells the story about what is going on with the characters.

Who is this source for Genoa?  Will Will recover from the beat down he has taken?  will neal get his story?  Will jim hook up with Hallie?  Will Don and Sloan get together?  What the f*&k happens to Maggie in Africa?

I'm about to go find out now!

--Mike D

The Wolverine – A Film Review by Mike D

The question was once asked,” I know you can be overwhelmed and you can be underwhelmed, but can you ever just be whelmed?”  Well, thanks to Marvel Entertainment/20^th Century Fox’s recent film, The Wolverine, I can finally answer that question with an emphatic yes.

Director James Mangold (Walk the Line, 3:10 to Yuma) delivers a fine film.  The amount of action is fine, the plot is fine, and the acting is fine…..  The problem is, fine is not a word you want to be describing a movie about a Super Hero (although anti-hero is really more accurate).

I think that is part of the problem though, this really isn’t a super hero movie.  It is a movie about a man trying to find himself, trying to come to terms with who and what he is.  It is a story about a man who seemingly wants to die (because he can’t) but learns the value of life and wants to live.  That would be great if the subject of the film isn’t a super (anti-) hero.  That would be great if recent films like Man of Steel, The Dark Knight Rises and Marlvel’s: The Avengers among others haven’t whipped up the super hero loving community into a frenzy.  That would be great if we weren’t coming off of the biggest comic event of the year (San Diego Comic Con) and it would be great if it wasn’t sandwiched with Thor: The Dark World coming this fall.

We begin with the bombing of Nagasaki during WW II, 1945.  Logan (Wolverine) saves the life of Yashida, a young Japanese soldier be shielding him from the blast.  In doing so he reveals to the young man what he is.  The young man tries to repay him with a beautiful katana sword but Logan refuses to accept it and asks the man to hold on to it for him.

We return to modern day where Logan is living in the woods outside of some hick town filled with hicks and hunters.  He is unshaven, dressing like a mountain man and keeps to himself.  He seems to have a fondness for a Grizzly bear living in the woods as well.

When the Grizzly turns up dying, Logan is forced to put it out of its misery which results in him being in a punitive mood.  He tracks the bear killer to a local bar where he proceeds to teach the guy a lesson.

This is where we are introduced to Yukio (Rila Fukushima), an assassin sent to deliver a message to Logan.  She informs him that the Japanese man he saved back in Nagasaki was dying and wished to say good bye to Logan.  She produces the sword (known as the separator) that Logan had once refused as proof that her mission was legit and off they go.

Logan gets to Japan and is brought to Yashida’s compound.  Yashida has built a commercial empire and is one of the wealthiest men in all of Japan.  Logan is bathed and shaved (down to the mutton chops that is) in order to be honorably presentable to a man of Yashida’s stature.  Yes, you do get a small glimpse of Hugh Jackman man butt while in the tub.

Logan meets with the dying man and learns that his trip was not just so the old man could say good bye.  The old man offers something he feels Logan wants, a warrior’s death.  He can offer the thing he feels Logan wants most: mortality.  He, along with his oncologist Dr. Green, says it is possible.  Ruh-Roh, shit just got real huh?  More on that later.

Logan refuses and proceeds to go to sleep where he has one of several dreams involving Jean Grey.  He is used in the film as a vehicle to promote Logan’s desire, at least subconscious desire to seek or accept mortality.  She goes to kiss him but turns out it is really Doctor Green who does something funky to Logan but then he wakes up feeling strange.

So Logan Attends Yashida’s funeral with Yukio, Yashida’s son Shingen (Hiroyuki Sanada, Rush hour 3, 47 Ronin), granddaughter Mariko (Tao Okamoto, debut film, model), her soon to be husband (arranged marriage) corrupt Minister of Justice Noburo Mori and the Yakuza (Japanese mafia).  What?  Yep, crashing a funeral to kidnap Mariko who will be named Yashida’s heir to his empire fits the m.o. of a notorious mob gang. 

Logan senses what is about to happen and starts to try and get Mariko out of there.  As he attempts to do so he gets attacked numerous times by the Yakuza and something strange happens, he actually gets hurt.  He manages to get Mariko out of there with the help of a mysterious figure killing bad guys with a bow and arrow while running along the rooftops.

Logan and Mariko are forced to hole up in a “love hotel” for the night where Logan gets stitched up by a vet student.  These scenes to help highlight the humor of the film which is fitting for a character like Logan who is full of quips and one-liners.

Logan manages to get Mariko on a bullet train and they head to one of the hidden Yashida family homes for some rest and regrouping and bonding time (wink wink).  Seriously though, they do form a nice bond as they talk about Logan’s history with her grandfather and as a warrior.  Turns out the home is right by the place where Logan saved her grandfather.  Their time together kind of reminded me of Daniel and Kumiko in the little Okinawan village in The Karate Kid Part II.

After one night where Logan and Mariko, umm, bond, Logan has another Jean Grey dream.  Through his discussions with her we see Logan transforming from someone who wants to die into someone who wants to live.  This sets up the final act nicely.

So Logan of course has to figure out how to cure himself.  He gets back to Yashida’s medical equipment and realizes that Doctor Green had somehow implanted a creepy crawly creature into his heart to suppress his powers.  He has to remove this creature in order to restore his regenerating powers but Yukio, along with being an assassin also gets visions and she saw him dying on the medical table with his own heart in his hand.  Good thing visions don’t always come true eh?

Logan is back to normal and realizes he wants to be a warrior again just in time to fight a giant ninja built out of Adamantium.  There will be no (further) spoilers here, however there is a fantastic action packed end sequence and someone who shall remain nameless decides to take his rightful place as a warrior, THE warrior (that’s the only clue you are going to get, LOL.

Seriously though, the story was pretty paint-by numbers.  There weren't too many surprises or reveals.  The plot was pretty simple and straight forward.  Logan wanted peaces, to shed his warrior past but he meets some people, falls in love and embraces his destiny as The Wolverine, as illustrated by his ability to say good bye to Jean.  There was action, humor and his claws came out, a lot!  The 3D was not utilized to its fullest by any means so don’t waste your money on that.

The best part of the film, honestly, was the post credit sequence that set up XMEN: Days of Future Past.  The film itself was like eating a good Chinese food dinner, you enjoy the meal but aren't really satiated.  This film was entertaining but not fulfilling and you certainly leave it at the theater.

Based on the rating system of Full Price, Matinee, Cheap Show, Rental or Wait for Cable, I would put it halfway between Cheap Show and Matinee (3.5/5).  If you are a Comic person or a super hero person or general all around geek, this movie will be more of a must see simply because of who it is about.  For the general public, there are better and worse films to see and you can probably wait until Thor in November.

check out the review at http://filmobsession.com/movie/review-the-wolverine/ for a different rating system and other content as well.

Coming Back to the Light (Side of the Force that is:)

Why I Can Love Star Wars Again by Mike D

I have been a Star fan for over 30 years.  I loved watching SW, talking about SW, even wrote a five page paper about the connection between Judaism and Star Wars.  George Lucas was the center of my entire entertainment world for giving me such a gift.

Then a funny thing happened; he started tinkering with it.  He released the THX edition.  Within months of that he released the Special Edition.  Then came the Collector’s Edition.  This is all on VHS mind you, we haven’t even gotten to his DVD shenanigans yet!

My main question is why George?  Why milk the people who made you a billionaire?  You already got our money from repeated viewings of the films and all of the merchandising.  You KNOW we are a rabid fan base and will eat up whatever you serve so why not just wait and put out an edition you were happy with to help us save some cash?  I think that was tremendously inconsiderate of you.  If you want to tinker with your creation, fine, but does it have to come out of our bank accounts?

The same principle applies to the DVDs as well, this edition, that edition, this set that set, blah blah blah.  The fact is with the new medium Lucas figured out a way to milk us out of more cash.  Again, why?  Why not just wait a while, let it simmer, take a look at it and when you are ready THEN release THE edition you want people to see.  I get it George, according to you the original movie was only 25-30% of what you thought it should be but why do I have to pay for that?  You are a greedy bastard who is soaking up billions and taking advantage of your core audience.  In 2005 there was a “Limited Edition” original trilogy DVD set released which was simply a repackaged version of the 2004 set with no changes AND no original versions of the films.  He was charging us for stuff he had already sold us and he was censoring the versions we would have access to.

Now let’s talk about content.  Some of the changes I liked, some I didn’t mind and some I probably didn’t even notice.  Adding “A New hope” to the title line?  Knock yourself out George.  You want to make some blue Screening look better or make explosions look better?  Fantastic!  Adding a horrible looking CGI Jabba the Hutt?  Come on George, it looked awful.  There was a version of Empire Strikes Back where he added a whole dialogue between the Emperor and Vader which spells out the entire story of Luke and Leia and how things are going to go down.  This completely changed the dynamic of the story of Vader and his obsession with his kids.  Replacing Sebastian Shaw (original hologram Annakin) with Hayden Christensen for the end seen of Return of the Jedi was simply blasphemous. The most egregious offense, the most difficult change to swallow was having Greedo shoot first in order to make it look like Han was acting in self defense.  Let me be as clear as I can be, HAN SHOT FIRST!!!!!!!!!!!

I know what some of you may say, he created it, he owns (owned) it and he can do whatever he pleases with it and owes us fans nothing.  Others (me) would argue that Star Wars became such a phenomenon that it in effect became a public entity and we fans deserve to at least have some sort of ownership of it acknowledged. 

Despite all of this, I still loved Star Wars.  Admittedly not as much as I used to as my hatred of Lucas dampened my love for his creation but I still loved it. 

Then the information I had been waiting years for was delivered and I thought all of my problems would be solved.  He was doing the prequels!!!  Finally we would get to see how Darth Vader’s story began and how we got to episode IV.  The teaser trailer still send chills up my spine.  I can still picture it, a strange creature walking through a foggy marsh and the words coming on the screen:” Every generation has a legend.  Every Journey has a first step.  Every saga has a beginning.”  I didn’t even need the visuals of the trailer, Episode I was coming and I could not wait!

Of course I had to wait a year but it was so going to be worth it, it had to be, how could it not be?  In that year I had gotten a glimpse of Darth Maul and his double headed light saber and was giddy with seeing a more physical badass Sith than Vader.  The poster with Annakin’s shadow looking like Darth Vader was epic.

Then the movie came out and it sucked ass.  Jake Lloyd was a terrible choice for young Skywalker.  Darth Maul was barely in it and died so ridiculously I can’t even stand talking about it.  Lucas explains the force as being tiny micro organisms inside people and don’t even get me started on Jar Jar.

Episode II was barely better.  There were two main issues I had with Episode II and one was the casting of Hayden Christensen who couldn’t act his way out of a paper bag.  I’d say he was a one trick pony with no tricks.  He couldn’t properly express any emotion if his life depended on it.  His chemistry with Natalie Portman was painful to watch.  Their love story was sickening to witness.  Lucas had given them some truly abysmal dialogue.

Episode III was actually decent but by then the damage was too late.  I had officially hated Star Wars.  The main reason was George Lucas.  He proved he didn’t care about me by putting out cash grab product after cash grab product and by putting out the prequel films he did, he proved that he didn’t care about me anymore. No self respecting original trilogy fan could defend what Lucas did in the prequels.  He shat on the beautiful thing he created.   I will say that the prequels were for the kids, Lucas has ALWAYS been consistent about that and I wasn’t a kid anymore.  Daddy had a new family.  I just wish he wouldn’t have forgotten about his old family.

There is a spectacular DVD called “The People VS George Lucas.”  It came out in 2010 and it covers the spectrum of all things Star Wars, everything discussed in this article and more.  It is done through a series of interviews with fans and industry professionals alike.  It really captures the love/hate relationship that the fans have with George Lucas.

Hate is not good.  As we know it comes from fear and anger and leads to suffering.  I have suffered as have millions of other fans.  But then late last year the rain stopped, the clouds parted, rays of sunshine poked through and if I looked closely enough I could even see a rainbow.  Disney was buying Lucasfilm, Disney was going to own Star Wars.  Ding dong the witch was dead, the thorn removed from the lion’s paw, my impediment to loving Star Wars was gone!!!!!!!!!! 

The euphoria came and went and worry set back in.  What was Disney going to do with my beloved Star Wars.  I saw what they did with “Tron: Legacy” and worried Star Wars would suffer a similar fate.  It would be “Disnified” meaning it would be all sizzle and no steak, marketed to the hilt but no substance.  They announced there would be a long anticipated Episode VII.  An eerie feeling started sinking into my gut, like I had been there before and could not, would not go through that pain again.  I honestly wasn’t sure I would even go see it.

I worried for naught because it turns out Disney was taking this seriously.  They chose J.J. Abrams to direct the film.  Problem solved.  Abrams did a miraculous job with Star Trek 2009.  He took a much beloved franchise with a vocal and passionate fan base and he delivered a product that appealed to them and appeased them by staying true to its roots yet also blazing a trail for new Trekkies.  If anyone can save my Star Wars relationship it is the wunderkind himself. 

With Lucas NOT involved and the project firmly in the hands of the master himself, I am actually hopeful that I can once again have a hate free love affair with Star Wars.  There are no guarantees in life and I am still a little nervous, but thanks to Disney’s billions and Abrams’ genius and vision, I do indeed love Star Wars again.

J.J., may the force be with you sir!

This article, along with news, reviews, give-a-ways and free movie passes can be found at http://filmobsession.com/.

World War ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ

I just got back from seeing World War Z, directed by Marc Forster (Machine Gun Preacher, Quantum of Solace) and starring Brad Pitt.  To put it simply, it sucked.  If it were a vampire film that would be good but since we are dealing with Zombies, not so much.

I loved Forster's work with MGP, he did some good work there and Quantum of Solace was not so good but fairly entertaining.  Drew Goddard (BTVS, Angel, Alias, Lost) did some script work and J. Michael Straczynski (Babylon 5) helped with the story.  This combined with the fact that it was based on the very successful book written by Max Brooks makes me think this film should have been a slam dunk of a success.  It wasn't.

The directing was uneven with there being peaks of action and suspense and valleys of pointless plot developments and a lack of a solid thread tying them together.  That is ultimately Forster's responsibility.  JMS is usually a beast with story development but he just came up short with this one and Drew Goddard who is such a gifted writer, couldn't save the film with any witty dialogue that should have rubbed off on him from all of those years working with/for Joss Whedon.

This film had an identity crisis:  did it want to be a zombie film or an Outbreak/Contagion film.  It tried to be both and succeeded at neither.  The beginning of the film starts off pretty much right away with the Zombie outbreak but it is shot so quickly and in such close shots that it was very hard to tell what was going on or see the action that was taking place.  They gave us no time to develop a relationship with or feelings for Brad Pitt's character or his family outside of traditional familial feelings which we had to fill in on our own.  We get info that he used to be some sort of big deal in the intelligence/U.N. world but never really even come close to getting the full story.  We don't get a closer look at the zombies until much later in the film and by that point it is too late to care.

It then tried to turn into a film about a virus outbreak where they were searching for a patient zero.  Of course Pitt's character is leading the expedition even though we still really have no idea what his credentials are.  It takes him to South Korea, Israel and somewhere else I don't even remember because by that point in the film I just wanted it to be over.  Each stop he had just made no sense and the situations he kept getting out of were a far reach even for a fictional apocalyptic movie.

Then we get to the end and it was just that, the end.  It was abrupt with a brief verbal epilogue of basically "we'll see how it goes from here but we have a chance."  Lame!

This film was just an epic fail.  I wouldn't exactly call it a waste of time but from now on, the Walking Dead gets my zombie attention exclusively.

Here is my new rating scale which is how would I recommend you see this film:  Full price, Matinee, Cheap show, Wait for rental or skip it.  Basically a 5 star system.

World War Z gets a Wait for rental (basically 2 out of 5 stars). You will be curious to see this film as I was between the production team (writers/directors...) and Brad Pitt but it is definitely not worth a trip to the theaters.

Sunday Bloody Sunday Part 2 - True Blood S06E05

This Week's True Blood got back to basics, fangin' and bangin'!!!!!   So it turns out that Warlow isn't hunting Sookie, he is in love for her, calls her his intended (Princess as he is a Prince).  He killed Sookie's parents to prevent them from killing her (Warlow revealed his intentions to turn her into a vampire bride) and Bill, being Lilith incarnate is Warlow's maker and can command him in such.  WTF, all in the first 3 minutes!

Sookie has her ball of light pointed at Warlow  and she burns him with it which gets Bill's Spidey sense all a tingling and he speeds off to presumably save her (even though he said she was dead to him).  Bill gets there and instead takes Warlow. I know, right?  With Jessica killing Andy's fairy daughters, Warlow's blood holds the cure to saving vampires from extinction

Flashback time to like 3500 BC and Warlow is a Fairy Prince getting some water and Lilith come out of nowhere, nekkid of course and bangs Warlow before turning him into a vampire.  Fangin' and bangin'!  At least she banged him first, lol.  we find out in "
real time" that Warlow in fact WANTS vampire destruction, presumably since he never wanted to be turned in the first place.

Sarah Newlin shows up at Jason Stackhouse's place talking about hoe she failed to save his soul.  He was a test and she failed.  Even though she is with the governor now she says God is telling her that Jason needs to fuck her.  As we know, Jason doesn't need too much prompting and proceeds to nail the shit out of her (no, not literally).  All is well until Jason's vampire ex Jessica shows up seeking comfort for killing Andy's kids and the former Mrs. Newlin is pissed and calls the vamp cops to arrest Jessica.

Jessica gets taken to the vampire prison camp where she meets Tara.  Tara and Eric voluntarily got arrested once they heard Pam was in trouble.  Maker or no Maker bond the only one who gets to fuck with Pam is Eric Northman.

The prison camp is pretty interesting actually.  "all in the name of science" Pam says as she walks by room after room of experiments.  One room was a vampire banging some chick at vampire speed and Pam seems to like that one.  She ends up in a room designed for therapy and is forced to talk about her feelings.  Yes, PAM is TALKNG about her FEELINGS!!!!!  She is rewarded with a blood donor so it is a win win win situation for the therapist, Pam and us viewers.

Alcide is hunting down Sam who is shacking up with the shifter groupie and Emma.  We get a seen in a dive wolf hick bar where they don't take kindly to "big city wolf" inquiries and Alcide gets propositioned by a skanky $50 hooker who ends up later on with his dad.

We do get a scene with Lafayette being a conduit for Sookie to speak to her dead parents which of course ends up with Lafayette being possessed by Sookie's dad who takes her to the lake and tries to finish the job he started the night he died.

The show ends with Eric and Pam locked in mortal combat at the vampire prison camp and sookie being drowned by her father who is in Lafayette's body.

Lots of plot development but back to basics, fangin' and bangin'.  Easily the best episode of the season so far.  With Dexter, Newsroom premier and Falling Skies, True Blood came to play this week!

Sunday Bloody Sunday - Part 1

Dexter S08E02

There was something that was bugging me after watching last week's season premier of Dexter.  The new character, Dr. Vogel, the "Psychopath Whisperer" had a lot of confidence in how she approached and even taunted Dexter.  She openly said to Dex "you can't kill me...because I don't fit Harry's code."  Where did this confidence come from and how in the hell did she know about Harry's code?

Turns out Dr. Vogel has known Dexter since he was 10.  We see old session footage with Harry and Dr. Vogel discussing Dexter's predicament.  Harry had taken Dexter to a crime scene and described Dexter's reaction as being fascinated, as if he were looking at a painting.  In fact he liked it so much he took a trophy from the crime scene, a piece of glass with blood on it, presumably a precursor to the now infamous blood slides.  As Dr. Vogel says to Dexter,"I helped create you, I consider myself to be your spiritual mom."

Dexter recalls his father taking him to that crime scene and also remembers wanting to be "the painter."  This is very cool new information and I like how the writers are taking us back to Dexter's beginning to help give us a more complete picture but it seems as if Dr. Vogel has a thing for dexter and being his "spiritual mom," ewwww!!!!  Between her and Deb, are there any female relatives that aren't hot for Dexter?

We see another DVD of Harry and Dr. Vogel discussing Dexter's progression as a killer.  Harry informs Vogel Dexter had begun showing his victims photos of what they had done to deserve the punishment they were getting.  This confuses harry a bit but Dr. Vogel explains that this shows Dexter has an innate sense of justice and she is quite pleased with his progress.

Despite her motives, Dr. Vogel clearly views Dexter as a gift to humanity where Dexter has felt more like a mistake.  This theme of gift vs. mistake is very fascinating and hopefully we will see more of that story line.

Anyway, there is a new victim who has his Anterior Insular Cortex removed so the new killer is kicking things up a notch.  He sends the AIC from the first victim to Dr. Vogel who reaches out to Dexter for help.  Turns out the good doctor thinks that a former patient of hers is doing the killing and might come after her.  It isn't just her safety she is worried about because it isn't just Dexter (helping to author/formulate "Harry's Code") that she has dealt with using "questionable" treatment methods.

Thanks to prints Dexter and Masuka, separately but equally get from the crime scene they come up with a suspect who is kind of a loner and a hunter and has a drunk driving arrest but is not a former patient of Vogel's.  They track down the suspect, last name Sussman but he is off the hook for the murders, mainly because they find him hanging from a meat hook so clearly there is another killer, the real killer still out there.

It was really great to see how Dexter responded to Dr. Vogel.  He doesn't trust her but after learning more about who she is and the role she played in his development/creation he slowly warms to her.  I think even more so than to Harry because I think Dexter always felt that although Harry loved him he viewed him as a freak and a mistake and something that needed to be controlled whereas Dr. Vogel views him as an elevated being with a higher purpose.  Dexter even opens up to her about Deb.

Dexter opening up to Vogel catches her off guard a little bit.  Dexter expressed to her it would have been nice to have had someone to talk to after Harry dies and Vogel questioned this since he is a psychopath and shouldn't have needed that.  It really helped set Dexter apart since she is an expert on people like him, onlu there really isn't anyone else like him.  I think that hurt her credibility a bit because she should have known him better since she helped "create" him.

Deb seemed back on track though.  She checked in with her boss at Elway Security and informed him that she was still in pursuit of the stolen jewelry she was tracking so they can get the 20% recovery fee.  He tries to dissuade her but you know Deb, so he accompanies her to Grimes' apartment to look for info on where the Jewels might be.  They track it to a storage place.  He is worried about her safety and has repeatedly asked her to drop things but now that they find out where the loot may be, he gets a phone call and has to go.  I'm not saying he is in on it, but come on, if you are worried about her you don't let her go alone.

Deb goes to the storage locker and finds the loot, yay!  Only problem is the mom assassin, El Sappo finds her there and proceeds to kick the holy hell out of her.  Deb is feisty and can swear like a sailor but El Sappo put her down, hard.  He didn't kill her because apparently he only kills people he gets paid to.

Dexter goes to check on her because he hasn't heard from her.  He is concerned but she says she is okay and they do the little dance they do.  She once again tells him that she never wanted to hate him, in fact she wanted the opposite.  Ok, I know they are not blood related but gross!!!!!

Later on, Dexter gets called to a crime scene where El Sappo is found in his car where he was executed.  Dexter finds a piece of blood that he believes came from the killer.  As he is running the sample in his lab, Deb shows up to go over the case with Quinn.  The results pop up on the screen and it turns out that the blood matches Deb!  Deb killed El Sappo.  Gets better, when Dexter confronts her about it she asks him to go into the evidence locker and switch out her gun since El Sappo took it from her when they tussled and it would clearly implicate her in his murder.

Deb is invited out for drinks by Batista and pulls up to the bar/restaurant.  Quinn sees her but before he can do or say anything she pulls away.  This is interesting because Quinn and Jamie have been having problems partly because Jamie thinks Quinn is still hung up on Deb, which he clearly is.  Also she (and Angel) are upset that he hasn't taken his Sergeant's exam which indicates he is not taking his career seriously.  He agrees to take the test but screw that, looks like we might be getting some Deb/Angel cat fight action and that would be awesome!

The scenes from next week's show were fantastic.  Vogel asks why Dexter didn't kill Deb when she found out what he was.  Vogel points out that Deb blames Dexter for taking away everything that she was.  Why is she trying to drive a wedge between Deb and Dexter?  So she can have him for herself?  Again, gross!!!!!  Looks like Deb is going further down the rabbit hole, Quinn and Dexter are trying to stop it and vogel is stirring the pot.  Can't wait for next week!