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The William Tell Overture makes everything sound more epic, even this simple cold open
is vastly improved with some music. Throw in a costume change, and a western-themed
background, and we've got ourselves a show. Not that I need any of those fancy gimmicks,
after all this is Movie Night!
Hello and welcome to Movie Night, the only review show not afraid to critique a picture
seven months after its release. I'm your host, Jonathan Paula. Tonight we'll be taking our
second look back at some of the bigger blockbusters from summer 2013, beginning with "World War
Z".
After its June 21, 2013, this 116 minute apocalyptic thriller based on the Max Brooks novel of
the same name tripled its $190 million budget at the worldwide box office. In a move we've
seen dozens of times before - this dramatic zombie movie opens with a montage of real
world news reports hinting at the coming infection that'll wipe out the human race - and stuck
at the center of it all is our resourceful family man, Brad Pitt; who must do whatever
he can to save his family, and rescue humanity. He's relatable, believable, and more than
capable in the lead role. Mireille Enos, Daniella Kertesz, Fana Mokoena, and David Morse deliver
great, if minor performances given their frightening surroundings - especially James Badge Dale,
who is slowly making a name for himself in key supporting in big-budget films, after
beginning his career a decade ago as Jack Bauer's sidekick on "24". Elyes Gabel is featured
briefly as a scientist, who stoically warns Pitt that "Mother Nature is a serial killer.
No one's better. More creative." Scenes in this PG-13 rated film can be particularly
violent, especially the gruesome transformation process after someone becomes infected - quickly
turning them into a blood-thirsty animal. The overlying plot is a familiar and tired
one... but executed here with such dark realism, as entire cities are written-off with a single
line of dialogue. This genre, inherently always forces the viewer to wonder what they would
do in a survival situation - and that's where the emotional power and suspense for this
story is derived. From a purely action-oriented standpoint, a grippingly shot and directed
sequence where Pitt's family races through an overrun apartment building for a helicopter
extraction is nerve-racking and intense. While groups of the zombies often look like CGI
rag-dolls and much of the blood looks decidedly fake, the close-quarters combat and visuals
however are excellently handled and edited; with the guttural growling of the infected
and Marco Beltrami's tense music underscoring every scene. With not much in the way of writing
or plot, this boils down to a well-paced, non-stop action thrill ride... with Pitt globe
trotting from one lead to the next like he's hunting for Carmen Sandiego. Smartly, director
Marc Forster opts for a low-key and dramatic climax, rather than an explosive action sequence,
and the movie is better because of it. Not particularly nuanced or original, there's
still enough excitement here to warrant repeat viewings. "World War Z", a "Visceral and gruesome
zombie action." Now let's go to the comments to hear your thoughts.
We both rated "World War Z" a SEVEN. While neither of us were really impressed with the
formulaic plot, the action and tension certainly worked well, allowing us both a good enough
reason to call this a COOL movie. Now for tonight's poll question: what's your favorite
zombie film? Leave your response as a comment below. Tonight's second review is for "The
Lone Ranger"
The latest effort from the actor, producer, director trio that brought us the massively
successful "Pirate Of The Caribbean" quadrilogy was released worldwide on July 3, 2013. Based
on the famous 1930's radio series of the same name, this hugely hyped $250 million dollar
adventure epic was unfortunately a commercial disappointment, with its $260-million international
take failing to earn back its marketing and production costs. In easily his largest role
to date, Armie Hammer stars as the title character, a recently deputized Texas Ranger who tracks
down vicious criminals to avenge his brother's death... with the help of a curiously eccentric
and bizarre native American played by the always amusing Johnny Depp, who sternly advises,
"There come a time, when good man must wear mask." As an on-screen duo, the Winklevoss
twins and Captain Jack Sparrow make an excellent team... their witty back-and-forth chemistry
comprising most of the film's lighter moments. I was struck however at how violent the picture
was at times, especially for a Disney. One gruesome scene has the nasty and deformed
bad guy, played expertly by one of my favorite character actors - William Fichter - gutting
a man's heart out of his still-breathing body. Tom Wilkinson, Barry Pepper, James Badge Dale,
and Helena Bonham Carter round out the talented supporting cast - with good, if under featured
roles. Set in 1869 Texas, this PG-13 rated film has all the trappings of a classic western;
large set pieces, a grandiose score from Hans Zimmer, plenty of thrills, one-liners, damsels
in distress, dastardly villains, and courageous, uncompromising heroes. At 149-minutes long
however, it's extremely drawn-out and poorly paced - each individual scene works great;
but there's just too many of them. A particular drain on the run-time is a pointless wrap
around plot involving a small child hearing the entire story in flashback - it never amounts
to anything, and could have been done away with entirely. Ridiculous unrealistic at times,
this is escapist Hollywood cinema at its finest, which plenty of strong emotional tension,
interesting interplay between the characters, and easy to follow action - thanks to director
Gore Verbinski's attention to detail in even the most hectic of scenes. When an updated
and extended version of the instantly iconic William Tell Overture swells to full volume
during the insanely entertaining climax, it's absolutely impossible not to smile and enjoy
the swashbuckling spectacle. Logistically, it doesn't always make sense, but this final
15-minute sequence, which sees two separate runaway trains racing each other on parallel
tracks with all the good guys and bad battling it out for justice and their lives - is positively
incredible, seriously one of the most inventive, well-choreographed, and entertaining scenes
in recent movie history - even throwing in a nod to "Back To The Future III" for good
measure. With sharp and beautiful visuals of Monument Valley, slick and effective editing,
and immersive sound effects - this picture is fantastically accomplished on a technical
level. Although awfully slow to get going, when it finally does - this is a wonderful
experience I'll definitely watch again. "The Lone Ranger", "Enthralling extravaganza overcomes
boring beginning." Here's what you had to say about the film in the YouTube comments.
Now, our scores for "The Lone Ranger"... a SIX and an EIGHT. While everyone criticized
the lengthy runtime, and some poor plot elements, you enjoyed the action and western elements,
ranking the movie GOOD. Perhaps going into the film with low-expectations helped, but
despite its lackluster second act... the rapturous finale more than saved this picture, especially
when you have that awesome music - I thought the movie was GREAT. As we enter a new year,
there's plenty of new movies to get excited about, so check out the Movie Night Archive
channel for my trailer commentaries, and an organized library of all our past reviews.
Last up tonight, "2 Guns".
This light-hearted action film easily doubled its $61 million dollar budget after its August
2nd, 2013 release. Following the success they shared with 2012's "Contraband" Director Baltasar
Kormákur and Mark Wahlberg have teamed again to produce this 109-minute adventure, based
off the graphic novel series of the same name. Wahlberg has never been a particularly strong,
or even believable dramatic actor... but in the right roles, like this one here - he is
undeniably entertaining and charismatic. He stars as a cocky, Navy Intelligence Officer
who finds himself on the wrong side of a botched undercover operation after he discovers his
partner, Denzel Washington is himself an agent for the DEA. The Academy award winning actor
is, as expected - impeccable in the second lead, and what comes as a surprise is how
effortlessly he bounces off of Wahlberg. Their almost jovial sibling-like rivalry and partnership
is this picture's strongest aspect, very reminiscent of the Gibson/Glover pairing in the "Lethal
Weapon" franchise. With a wink and a laugh, the two are immense fun to watch, as they
literally wait to the last second to make a decision, with Wahlberg confidently remarking,
"I got a plan. I mean, I'm capable of coming up with a plan." Although adept playing opposite
Washington for the second time, Paula Patton is underutilized as the female foil, but thankfully
she shows off her gorgeous body on more than one occasion. Edward James Olmos, James Marsden,
and Bill Paxton make up the film's trio of villains - each one bringing something unique
to the picture; especially Paxton as the mysterious and uncompromising bad guy, who has no issue
playing Russian Roulette as a means of interrogation. The R-rated story has a few twists along the
way, but is otherwise your average, decently-paced, run-of-the-mill investigation plot delivered
through typical and conventional cinematography. The score from Michael Tronick is similarly
forgettable, but never out of place. The movie does exactly what it needs to, and delivers
some competent thrills, laughs, and even some suspense - like when Washington quickly ducks
into a freezer after deliberately blowing up an entire building to escape searching
Naval patrols. Despite having a plot far too complicated and convoluted for its own good,
this is an innocent, shut-your-brain off type of action film where the good guys stop the
bad guys, and becomes friends in the process. It isn't anything special, but it's a decently
realistic time I wouldn't mind watching again. "2 Guns", "Stereotypical action with perfect
casting." Now let's read your opinions on this picture in the YouTube comments.
"2 Guns" on the rate-o-matic... a SIX and a SIX. We all agreed that Wahlberg and Washington
were the shinning element of this picture, with the plot being its weakest. You thought
it was GOOD. I especially some of the supporting-cast, and the fun action sequences. I'll rate it
a GOOD as well. Plenty of other great movies in theaters recently, so let's read some of
your Tweet Critiques.
If you see a new movie in theaters, Tweet your review with the #JPMN hashtag. Next week
we'll be reviewing three recently released pictures, "The Wolf Of Wall Street", "Grudge
Match", and "Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit", which opens nationwide on the 17th. If you get a
chance to see these films, share your opinions by voting in the polls below, or by leaving
a comment review. If you'd like to watch more Movie Night reviews, check out the "related
videos" on the right, or click SUBSCRIBE to be notified of all new content, and be sure
to follow me on Twitter, Facebook, or Google+ for updates between episodes. Once again,
my name is Jonathan Paula, thank you for watching and listening. Until next time, have a good
Movie Night!