Jack Reacher: Never Go Back features Tom Cruise once more in the role from Lee Child's bestselling book series. A former MP turned vigilante drifter, Reacher is once again drawn into a game of political intrigue when his successor in Washington, Major Turner (played with kick butt awesomeness by Cobie Smulders), is falsely accused of treason. Like the first Jack Reacher movie, there are twists, fist fights, and shootouts galore, however unlike the first movie, Never Go Back has a much tauter story. There are less plot holes in Never Go Back than there were in the first Jack Reacher movie, and that is what makes this one the better of the two. While director Edward Zwick does a good job directing the action, the movie doesn't necessarily do anything new in the action/thriller genre, but it does what one expects of a movie like this exceedingly better than pretty much any other action movie in recent memory.
Clint Eastwood's latest directorial effort, Sully, is a movie worthy of the accolades it has received. Detailing the true story of the Miracle on the Hudson and the NTSB investigation that followed for pilot Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger (played with extreme likability by Tom Hanks), Sully is another strong movie in a string of recent hits for Mr. Eastwood. While it would be very easy to wonder how a 90-minute drama could be created detailing an event that occurred in about two minutes of real time, screenwriter Todd Komarnicki tells the story non-linearly to keep a sense of momentum. One way that Komarnicki and Eastwood help keep the story fresh is they revisit the crash at multiple intervals and detail it from a different perspective -- similar to Akira Kursoawa's classic, Rashomon. By doing this in parallel with the NTSB investigation, Sully maintains a sense of white knuckle suspense for the entirety of the movie. That is the true brilliance of this movie. While we already know how the story ends, Clint Eastwood manages to keep our stomach tied up in knots because of his smart directorial choices, using minimal music and not overplaying the actual crash but showing it as it harrowingly happened in real life.
It was a bit of a surprise when DC and Warner Bros. announced a Suicide Squad movie a few years back. While the team made up of super villains forced into doing good by the US government has long been a fan favorite, it was an odd choice for the third movie in the shared DC universe of movies following Man of Steel and Batman v Superman. I still personally feel that way after seeing Suicide Squad. While the movie is leagues better than most critics want you to believe it is, it's also not as good as most fans were wanting it to be either. Instead, Suicide Squad is a flawed, yet occasionally fun comic book movie that will appease some, but not all.
The movie opens with a series of vignettes setting up the primary members of the Suicide Squad: Will Smith's Deadshot, Margot Robbie's Harley Quinn, Joel Kinnaman's Rick Flagg, Jai Courtney's Captain Boomerang, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje's Killer Croc, and Jay Hernandez's Diablo. They are all brought together by a morally dubious US agent by the name of Amanda Waller (played exceptionally by Viola Davis), to go into the fictional metropolis of Midway City to stop a supernatural threat that threatens the entire world. Once the Suicide Squad sets down in Midway City, the movie really starts to take off with wall-to-wall action, but the first forty-five minutes of set up really keeps the movie ever from gaining much momentum upfront. On top of that, as a DC Comics fanboy, I found many of the portrayals of the characters lacking.
While it is fun to see the Joker's girlfriend, Harley Quinn, on the bigscreen for the first time, I don't think writer/director David Ayer handled her well. Personally, I feel Margot Robbie was well cast, but she lacked the right material to make Harley the Harley from the comic books. The way Harley is written in this movie is a little too flirtatious for my liking, missing that naive quality that makes her so irresistibly entertaining in the comics. Then there is the bigger issue of the portrayal of Harley's puddin', Mr. J himself, the Joker.
Actor Jared Leto and Ayer seemed to want to turn the Joker more into a gangsta rather than a gangster, and I'm not really sure I like that angle, with the metal teeth just annoying me as a fanboy. Of course I could live with the appearance of the character if he acted like the comic book Joker for most of the movie, but the way the character is portrayed, he rarely does. He often comes across serious in most of his scenes, which is in stark contrast to every other Joker portrayal ever. Honestly, Jared Leto was always going to have a tough row to hoe with him being the first actor to follow Heath Ledger in the role, and unfortunately, while they tried to differentiate Leto's Joker from Heath's Joker, in the end, they might have tried too much. Now while I took issue with some of the characterizations in this movie, there were some that were spot on.
Viola Davis is absolutely perfect as Amanda Waller, getting the authoritative swagger of the character down pat. Then there's Will Smith as Deadshot, who is essentially being Will Smith as a hitman for hire, but his Deadshot works in areas where some of the other characters don't by injecting appropriate doses of humor and empathy into the role. And I can't go on without mentioning Karen Fukuhara as Katana, the sword-wielding ninja that comes in to protect Waller's liaison, Rick Flagg, from being turned on by the squad. Katana is not handled with as much attention as I wish she would have been, but Fukuhara makes the most of her limited screentime and really nails the silent, but deadly demeanor of the character. As well, while Ben Affleck is literally only in about two to three minutes of the whole movie, he continues to make a good impression as Batman. Sprinkle on top some action that is fun to watch unfold, and you have a Summer blockbuster that is more entertaining than it's not.
All in all, Suicide Squad is a movie that is enjoyable enough to warrant seeing if you're a fanboy, but you'll still probably come away with a few quibbles of your own. I am still baffled as to why DC isn't choosing to be like Marvel and be more faithful to the comic books with most of their characters, but Suicide Squad does manage to get right more than it gets wrong. As far as the three movies currently in the DC Extended Universe, I'd have to say Suicide Squad is the weakest of the three, weaker than both Man of Steel and Batman v Superman, which I still personally feel is the best of the flawed bunch.
After a nine year wait, Jason Bourne has returned to movie screens in what is perhaps the best Bourne movie of them all. Jason Bourne picks up nearly a decade after The Bourne Ultimatum, with Matt Damon's Bourne currently living in Greece as a street fighter, off of the CIA's radar. Of course it wouldn't be a Bourne movie if Bourne wasn't drawn back into the crosshairs of the CIA, only this time it's personal, when a major revelation about Bourne's past comes to light that propels Bourne on his quest for revenge. To say too much would rob this movie of the franchise's trademark twists and turns, which are all executed well by director Paul Greengrass.
Once more, Damon does far more with the role than what is required. With only about two dozen lines of dialogue in the whole two hour movie, Damon has to make us feel for Bourne through his actions and facial expressions, which with a character as stoic as Bourne, is no small feat. I can't help but think that had The Bourne Identity director, Doug Liman, cast a lesser actor as Bourne, the franchise would have never made it this far. Joining Damon once more is Julia Stiles, as former CIA analyst turned whistleblower, Nicky Parsons, as well as newcomers to the franchise, Tommy Lee Jones and Alicia Vikander. Vikander portrays a morally questionable CIA cyber agent on the trail of Bourne, while Jones acts as the head of the CIA. I have often said that I think every movie would be better with just a little bit of Tommy Lee Jones, and that is true here as well. However, what makes Jason Bourne possibly the best Bourne movie, is the emotional motivation that drives him in this one.
The first three Bourne movies were all pretty much about Bourne learning who he was by exposing what the CIA did to him, and once he did that, that was it. We didn't get to see what those revelations really meant for Bourne, which is what Jason Bourne does. When we first see Bourne again, he is a man adrift. He has no purpose in life and is struggling with the knowledge that he was a killer. Then Nicky comes back into his life, and with her she brings an emotional bombshell that sends Bourne into action once more. It is that emotional bombshell that makes Jason Bourne such a strong movie. It creates a basic human reason for the carnage beyond Bourne simply wanting to know who he was. Of course, while the Bourne movies have always been known for their smart storytelling, they're still action movies first and foremost, and Jason Bourne more than satisfies on that mark.
From a tense motorcycle chase during a riot in Greece, all the way to a car chase on the Las Vegas strip, Jason Bourne is an adrenaline-fueled thrill ride. While I think the final fight between Bourne and the bad guy is a little lackluster compared to some of the great fight scenes in previous Bourne movies, the end result of the fight is emotionally cathartic.
All in all, Jason Bourne is a movie that you must see if you are a fan of the Bourne movies. While I am not sure how well the movie will play if this is the first Bourne movie you've ever seen, Jason Bourne is such a well-crafted spy thriller, that I think just about anyone interested in this type of movie will feel rewarded.
It has been a rough year for DC Comics at the movies. While Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (or as most fanboys refer to it, BvS) made $872.7 million worldwide, that was at least three hundred million less than what Warner Bros. was initially predicting, and most importantly, wanting. Couple the negative critical response with a very mixed fan response, and DC has really found themselves in a PR pickle over the last few months since BvS came out. Most notably because BvS, while itself being a sequel to Man of Steel, was meant to be the launchpad for DC's own cinematic universe, akin to what Marvel has done with The Avengers.
First, let me clarify, I actually liked BvS (for my full review, here's the link), but it wasn't perfect and was not the way I ideally wanted to see these characters represented, and clearly most other fans agreed with me. At the time of BvS's release, Warner Bros. was already well into post-production on Suicide Squad, the villain mash-up movie that is releasing on August 5th, and was already filming a solo Wonder Woman movie to be released in June 2017. Add on top of that the fact that Justice League, DC's answer to The Avengers, was already set to start rolling cameras just a couple of weeks after BvS came out, and there were just too many balls rolling for Warner Bros. to pull the plug. They had to do damage control.
In the wake of the so-so reception of BvS, Warner Bros. tapped Jon Berg, the executive vp at Warners, to work with Geoff Johns, CCO of DC Comics, to oversee DC Films moving forward. Before that, DC Films was mostly being run by Man of Steel, BvS, and Justice League director, Zack Snyder, along with his wife and producing partner, Deborah Snyder, and The Dark Knight trilogy producer, Charles Roven. Now, Berg and Johns are essentially playing the role that Kevin Feige plays at Marvel Studios, overseeing all of the DC movies in production. Then came the news a month or so ago that WB made Ben Affleck an Executive Producer on any movie that features Batman, further wresting total control away from Snyder. Add on top of that the unconfirmed word of last minute rewrites to Justice League to inject more lightness into the movie, as well as confirmed last minute reshoots to Suicide Squad that may or may not have been to do the same thing, and it's safe to say that everyone knows Warner Bros. were trying to reposition their chess pieces to fix the situation internally.
With all that said, being a moviemaker myself, I know that most of this was already in motion before BvS came out, so to necessarily say that Suicide Squad, Wonder Woman, and Justice League were retooled after BvS, is not all that realistic. The movies that they are probably changed a little bit, but there's only so much you can do when two of the movies were already shot when everything hit the fan. So really I think DC and Warners knew they had to just wait it out till they had enough stuff to show fans to try and win back their trust, which made Comic-Con 2016 perhaps the most crucial piece on their chessboard.
Comic-Con is the largest comic book convention in the world, held every single July in San Diego, with pretty much every major geeky thing that is coming out over the next year having panels to promote their work. While some have debated whether or not a movie's presence at Comic-Con really impacts it's box office, it has been shown to be ground zero for positive buzz in the past, with the first Iron Man being the perfect case and point.
Robert Downey, Jr. was still seen as an iffy choice for Tony Stark, but when Marvel showed off footage from the movie at Comic-Con 2007, it started a parade of excitement in the fan community. That exact same thing is what DC and Warner Bros. knew they needed after the months of negative press they'd had in regards to their DC movies. It's bad enough that the casual moviegoing audience didn't respond as kindly to BvS as they had to The Dark Knight trilogy or The Avengers movies, but for a good portion of fans to have turned their back on the movie, that was the sign that the ship had to be righted. Thankfully, I can effectively say that DC and Warner Bros. have won Comic-Con 2016.
While it is too early to say if Warners has righted the ship, they came out swinging at their panel on Saturday. First, they finally made official the worst kept secret in Hollywood, that Ben Affleck was going to direct a Batman movie that he is co-writing with Geoff Johns. Then, DC kicked things into high gear by showing trailers for both Wonder Woman and Justice League. Both trailers emphasized lighter tones than Man of Steel and BvS had, with a fair few jokes sprinkled through. And after that, DC capped things off with a new sizzle reel for Suicide Squad that makes the movie look even more fun than it already did. All in all, DC and Warner Bros. did what they had to do and the fans responded accordingly, thanks in large part because Warners broke Comic-Con tradition.
Usually, most of the special trailers shown at Comic-Con are not released online and are only ever seen by those in the crowd. Thankfully, after years of bootleg trailers, it seems the studios are learning their lessons and Warners released all of these trailers online immediately after they premiered at Comic-Con. This made it easier for Warner Bros. to say, "We value the fans." That's how I saw them, and I'm glad I did, because personally, I was super impressed by everything I saw.
I loved seeing more of Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman and really dig the World War I setting for her first solo movie. From the looks of things, director Patty Jenkins has made one of the most visually stimulating superhero movies ever made, with Wonder Woman's home of Themyscira looking particularly amazing. As well, I think Chris Pine looks charmingly fantastic as Col. Steve Trevor, the first man Wonder Woman ever meets, and her love interest to boot.
As far as Justice League goes, I loved the nice bits of humor in the trailer, seeing Ben Affleck's Bruce Wayne going around to recruit the likes of Aquaman and the Flash. The tone and feel of the trailer is very much the tone and feel I think most fans wanted from BvS, which is a tone that takes itself seriously, while still being fun and colorful. It's a tough balance, but if Snyder has managed to apply that tone to the entire movie, we may be in for something special.
Then finally, the sizzle reel from Suicide Squad only furthered my interest in the movie, which has slowly been growing since last year's Comic-Con. I'm still not a fan of Jared Leto's look as The Joker, mainly because I don't like the tattoos or the grill on his teeth, but there is no denying how entertaining the movie looks.
While it's always possible that DC and Warners used the few moments of levity in each movie to try and sell these movies as being different than BvS, I genuinely believe that the folks in charge have finally listened. Fans don't like what they have been doing, and it seems that they are actively trying to fix things and change the conversation.
All in all, even though we have to wait till 2017 to see if Wonder Woman and Justice League deliver on their promise, Suicide Squad hits theaters in just two weeks. If that movie succeeds with fans, as well as with critics and casual moviegoers, then BvS will start to become a distant memory, thanks in large part to an awesome Comic-Con. While some might argue that Marvel Studios still won Comic-Con with a new trailer for Doctor Strange, some new Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2 and Spider-Man: Homecoming info (confirming Kurt Russell as Star-Lord's Dad, Ego the Living Planet, and Michael Keaton as the villainous Vulture in Spider-Man), as well as the announcement of Academy award winner Brie Larson as Captain Marvel, I believe DC won Comic-Con hands down. Simply put, this is the first time Wonder Woman has ever had a movie of her own, and this is the first Justice League movie ever made. Both of these comic books predate anything at Marvel, save for Captain America. The time has finally come for these DC properties to shine, and fans have had their excitement renewed for these movies. Well done, DC.
Jack Reacher: Never Go Back features Tom Cruise once more in the role from Lee Child's bestselling book series. A former MP turned vigilante drifter, Reacher is once again drawn into a game of political intrigue when his successor in Washington, Major Turner (played with kick butt awesomeness by Cobie Smulders), is falsely accused of treason. Like the first Jack Reacher movie, there are twists, fist fights, and shootouts galore, however unlike the first movie, Never Go Back has a much tauter story. There are less plot holes in Never Go Back than there were in the first Jack Reacher movie, and that is what makes this one the better of the two. While director Edward Zwick does a good job directing the action, the movie doesn't necessarily do anything new in the action/thriller genre, but it does what one expects of a movie like this exceedingly better than pretty much any other action movie in recent memory.
