The opening scene of My Lucky Stars is nothing but a big tease. It begins with an exciting fast-paced car chase and then later a foot chase between your standard cops and robbers. The movie doesn't even bother introducing its characters or even telling you who the bad guys are. It just throws you into the action. Not saying that's a bad thing, mind you. But this scene sets up the completely wrong tone for the movie. The action is business serious without any hint of its true humorous nature.
Then one of the cops (Yuen Biao) gets abducted by the villain and the plot is finally given some attention. His partner nicknamed Muscles (Jackie Chan) arranges to have one of his closest friends nicknamed Kidstuff (Sammo Hung) released from prison so he can help track down the jewel thieves that are holding his partner hostage. Kidstuff is also instructed to reunite all of his friends that grew up in the same orphanage and who also have similarly weird nicknames: Herb, Rawhide, Roundhead, and Sandy. Together they are known as the Five Lucky Stars. They are certainly lucky to get anywhere in life, given how incompetent they are with everything.
So what is so special about these lucky stars that makes their services so necessary to acquire? Beats me. They are however essential to the movie because it depends entirely on their comedic routines to carry things forward. So after an exhilarating start that promises an epic chase thriller, the movie degenerates into comedy that matches the quality of prime time sitcoms. Maybe that's a little harsh. At times, the comedy is entertaining. One scene that stands out is how each of the Lucky Stars have a chance to get closely tied up to an unlucky female after repeatedly staging a robbery in her home. It's outrageous that she falls for the same trick more than twice but that's what you get with far-fetched material that doesn't take itself seriously.
Then after five or so simple-to-elaborate skits, the movie remembers that it needs to resolve the plot. Jackie Chan's character returns after nearly forty-five minutes of absence to infiltrate the bad guy's hideout inside an amusement park and kick some butt. Despite limited screen time, Chan is given enough room to put on a good show for the fight crowd. At that point however, it's too late. The movie already wasted enough time with these lucky stars to really make us care who wins in the end. I think even Three Stooges shorts are faster at advancing their stories.
At best, My Lucky Stars is simply a vehicle for Sammo Hung to show off his directing skills. There is not enough inspiration here for it to have any chance at cult status. Normally I wouldn't mind a silly comedy like this. My sense of humor is weird enough. I just wish the movie didn't kid around with itself and had stuck to one game plan. It isn't even inconsistent enough to be considered a "random" comedy. Just one that could have been a lot better.
The remaining toys yet to be sold at Andy's garage sale are back in the third and most likely final chapter in Pixar's flagship Toy Story franchise. Get ready for an emotional roller coaster with this one, folks. Pixar may have outdone themselves here.
This story begins with a then-and-now retrospective as we see home video footage of Andy Davis (voice of John Morris) using his favorite toys to create exciting scenarios of cops, robbers and green aliens. Fast forward to the present day; Andy is a grown teenager bound for college packing up his belongings for the big trip. The big question: what will happen to his beloved toys that haven't been played with in years? Many have already moved on to other places through yard sales (i.e. Bo Peep). Others saw the writing on the wall (the green Army men) and already ventured off to other places. This leaves the most loyal toys still hoping for one last day of playtime adventure to ponder their destiny.
In franchise tradition, our protagonists find themselves in a big mix-up. Andy's mother accidentally packs up the toys bound for the attic into her donation box to Sunnyside Daycare. With the exception of Woody (voice of Tom Hanks), the toys feel betrayed since they believed they were not even valued enough to live in the attic and that the mistake was intentional. Upon arrival at Sunnyside, the toys are greeted by veteran resident Lotso (voice of Ned Beatty). Lotso explains that Sunnyside is a toy's paradise. The place is always populated by happy children that sit around and play with toys all day. When the children grow older, they are replaced by more children. Toys never get abandoned and will always find fun companions here. The protagonists embrace their new home but Woody refuses to go along with it, insisting that they are still the property of Andy and they owe it to him to return home.
Life at Sunnyside does not turn out to be as pleasant as the fantasy promises. The children play far too rough with the toys, leaving them too battered to be happy. Suddenly the attic doesn't seem so bad. Lotso and his right-hand man Ken (voice of Michael Keaton) explain that they need to pay their dues and work their way up the system of government in order to be around the gentler kids. Too bad Sunnyside operates more like a prison than a government. Finding this second-rate treatment unacceptable, the heroes conduct a plan to find their way home before Andy moves away.
The best thing about Toy Story 3 is its unpredictable nature. That attribute is hard to come by in family films. It is evidence to the point I wanted to make in my "Spy Next Door" review; that family films do not have to insult the adults' intelligence. The plot is never clearly outlined as to what the good toys' final fate would be. They want to return to Andy's attic, but is that really the happy ending everyone is looking for?
The Sunnyside escape sequence can rival the best live action heist films for its cleverness. Characters are still loyally explored by the screenwriters who clearly have an affection towards them. Each one is given importance to the outcome. Let's make one thing clear before we move on: This is not a "cash-in" sequel. The utmost care is given to how the themes develop and its relation to the previous films. It is made not only to entertain but also to hit home for its target audience. Young children, you say? Guess again.
All the nail-biting action and drama is rewarded with a grand finale. And what a finale it is. My tears almost flooded my 3D glasses to the point where I had to clean it off. Speaking of which, I do recommend seeing the movie in 3D. The animation is crisp smooth without any signs of sloppy last-minute editing. On top of that, the toys look even more realistic like you're right in the room with them.
Pixar has accomplished something amazing with Toy Story 3. They made a great stand-alone film. And even better than that, they created a franchise that is made to speak to the child, adolescent and young adult in all of us through the course of three different films. Instead of re-inventing itself to appeal to a new generation of young audiences, Pixar did the smart thing and aimed their product to the same audience that watched the original Toy Story in 1995. Most were children then. Now as adults, they can truly appreciate Toy Story 3 for its illustration of growing up and leaving the toy world behind.
Toy Story is the movie for young children that need toys to occupy their time as a child.
Toy Story 2 is the movie for older children that still have a wild imagination and love their toys for their true value over their E-BAY value.
Toy Story 3 is the movie for children now grown-up who no longer need toys and may not realize how much the toys need them.
The Karate Kid presents challenges to several people involved in the movie. It challenges the filmmakers to draw their audience in through nostalgia and entertain them through good storytelling. It challenges Jackie Chan to act as mentor to our hero rather than be the hero. And it challenges a young Jaden Smith to prove himself to be more than just a product of nepotism and that he has a place in the competitive world of Hollywood. Did these folks succeed at what they set out to do?
For the short answer: mostly yes. For the long answer, continue reading.
The plot of The Karate Kid does not stray too far from its 1984 roots. The story begins in the city of Detroit. We meet our 12-year-old hero Dre Parker (Jaden Smith). His mother (Taraji Henson) is forced to relocate to China in order to continue working for her company. (I guess she drew the wrong straw.) This of course means Dre has to say goodbye to his friends and meet some new ones in China.
He is lucky to meet Mei Ying (Wenwen Han), a pretty female classmate that seems to be fascinated with his hairstyle. The two fall for each other and seem to have a great thing going until trouble looms around the corner. According to some Chinese religions, all the good luck that a person encounters during the course of life will be balanced with an equal amount of bad luck. Dre's bad luck comes in the form of the other person that has eyes for Mei Ying; one of the star students of the local Kung Fu academy overruled by a ruthless teacher. Offended by Dre's girl wooing and most likely his appearance, the bully rounds up his fellow students to terrorize and beat on Dre every chance they get. On a fateful day, the maintenance man at Dre's apartment Mr. Han (Jackie Chan) intercepts a beatdown and fends off the attackers. Impressed by his moves, Dre requests Mr. Han to teach him martial arts skills so that he wouldn't have be scared of his enemies anymore. Han agrees only after witnessing firsthand the merciless nature of the Academy students. Dre is given a chance to fight back with honor by participating in a special kung fu tournament where he gets to battle his adversaries one-on-one for moral glory.
This is fascinating and all, but there are some things that I want to know that is not shown in the movie. For instance, how does Dre expect to survive in a Chinese school without understanding very much Chinese dialect? And why does his mother show such little concern about her son running around from place to place unsupervised? I can't think of a more intimidating situation for a kid. Wait a minute. I get it now. Dre grew up in Detroit. Any place looks like Disneyland compared to Detroit. No wonder they embrace their new surroundings so quickly.
My biggest fear going into The Karate Kid was that there would no surprises. I was expecting a formulaic showcase of inspirational material and would have been fine with that. To my delight, there was a nice surprise concerning the character of Mr. Han. Turns out he is not the wise old master that we are accustomed to seeing in this genre. He may know everything about Kung Fu but he does not know how to live with himself. Mr. Han hides a tragic secret that has kept him in despair for most of his life. The guidance and wisdom he offers to Dre gives him a new sense of satisfaction. Exposing the wise man's flaws is unconventional but works here in humanising the character and bringing more credibility to the story.
Other characters seem wasted. Dre's mother is mostly regulated to gasping in horror every time her son takes a nasty hit from an enemy. And Dre's first English-speaking peer is quickly forgotten about after the fifteen-minute mark. Most of the movie is devoted to Dre's relationship with Han; the only two characters that are absolutely essential to develop.
I hope Jackie Chan earns some special attention for his portrayal of Han. Here he breaks away from his typecasted "goofy nice guy caught in the wrong place" character and delivers some sincere drama. I have seen Chan in serious roles before so there wasn't any doubt in my mind that he could pull it off. Having said that, I was still impressed with the high caliber he reached here. I remember reading years ago that Chan had been studying under an acting coach so he could adapt to more dramatic roles when the time came to slow down his stuntman act. The work paid off big time and you can see the result for yourself.
As far as Jaden Smith goes....I decided to reserve my judgment despite him failing to impress me with his previous efforts. To become the next Karate Kid, it required a lot of training and focus. With both of his famous parents producing, Jaden didn't really need to audition. I'm sure the money from the Smith family put into the project was enough of an entry fee. I don't believe Jaden was the best person for the job but I also believe in giving credit where credit is due. The kid pulled it off. Dre's transition from fish-out-of-water to Kung Fu master was believable enough to work. There were also times when Jaden seemed to inherit mannerisms from his old man. From the dance moves to the intense stare, it sometimes felt like watching a young Will on the screen. In fact, it wouldn't surprise me if Will himself was on the set coaching his son along the way. "Okay, Jaden. Watch this............See what I did there? Now you try it."
It's kind of a shame that the studio went the safe route by naming the movie "The Karate Kid" instead of the original choice of "The Kung Fu Kid." It shows a lack of confidence in your own product by tying it too closely to what is being imitated. There is enough good filmmaking here so that it wouldn't be necessary to piggyback on nostalgia. Besides, there is no Karate in the movie at all so it doesn't even make sense.
When our liking to Dre reaches its peak, the story reaches its finale at the Kung Fu tournament. Hollywood seems to hate long fight scenes for God knows whatever reason so the fights in this film are kept short. The good news is they are still exciting to watch and offer several "cheer for me now" moments that get the heart racing. Though the violence never exceeds PG levels, some parents may be a little shocked at how hard-hitting the action is. Those blows to the head are amplified loud enough for the hurt to be felt by everyone.
It all leads to a more than satisfactory conclusion and makes the film's one-hundred and forty minute running time worth it.
Overall, The Karate Kid is a welcome addition to the multiplex's summer lineup. All the right ingredients are there to make up for the bad ones. If you're looking for a feel-good film for a little kick (no pun intended) of motivation, this one might do the trick.
The other night I found myself in the mood to revisit an old favorite from the past. Not always the easiest task since I have a lot of old favorites stashed on my bookshelf and in the basement closet. Often I'd spend so much time deciding what movie to watch that by the time a choice is made, I could have been finished with that movie had I decided on it immediately. This time was an exception. Such random things encountered during the day can trigger flashbacks of quotable lines and memorable scenes from movies engraved in my mind. For the life of me I can't remember how this one started, but there was no question that I was eager to watch Who Framed Roger Rabbit again; a film that I loved as a child and love even more now as an adult.
Set in 1940s Hollywood, Who Framed Roger Rabbit takes place in a universe where animated cartoon characters are real and known as "toons". They hail from the neighboring city of ToonTown and their only purpose in life (which they take great pride in) is to make people laugh. Seeing dollar signs, Hollywood producers have hired the toons to star in studio exclusive short films and main features for big-time profits. One such producer R.K. Maroon (Alan Tilvern) is having trouble dealing with one of his main stars Roger Rabbit (voice of Charles Fleischer). Roger's focus on work has been on the decline and Maroon believes one of the reasons is that he is too distracted (and who can blame him?) by his attractive wife Jessica (voice of Kathleen Turner) who works at the popular underground Ink and Paint Club.
Maroon hires private detective Eddie Valiant (Bob Hoskins) to uncover some dirt on Jessica in the hopes that Roger would abandon her and return his primary focus to his film career. Valiant along with his deceased brother Theodore were once a respected pair of crime solvers in toon-related cases. That all changed the day Theodore was murdered during a bank robbery case in ToonTown.....by a toon. As a result of the tragedy, Valiant became an alcoholic and has been prejudiced against toons ever since. He at first refuses to investigate on Jessica but eventually gives in since he is in need of money.
During a snooping job that would make today's paparazzis proud, Valiant captures and releases a set of photographs to the press that reveal Jessica having an affair (but presented as a metaphor) with the owner of ToonTown: Marvin Acme (Stubby Kaye). Probably the same Marvin Acme that has Wile. E. Coyote to thank for being his number one customer. Outraged by what he has seen, Roger looses his cool and appears to have murdered Acme in a fit of rage.
However, the toons and Roger himself insist he is innocent and that there are more layers to the case than what appears on the surface. Valiant is encouraged to dig deeper and find the real person responsible for Acme's murder. Further questions are raised concerning Acme's non-recovered last will and testament, leaving the ownership of ToonTown in doubt. Valiant has to act quickly since Roger is now a wanted fugitive and the newly elected and obsessed ToonTown district prosecutor Judge Doom (Christopher Lloyd) is hot on his trails with a new toon-executing liquid he calls "the dip."
Who Framed Roger Rabbit had been critically acclaimed for its technical achievements as well as its original story. It is loosely inspired by a 1981 novel titled "Who Censored Roger Rabbit?", a creative work in its own right but bearing little resemblance to this picture.
The movie is not the first to blend live action and animation nor would it be the last. But the near flawless execution of this innovative style has never been better than what is seen here. The animated toons interact with the human characters and their environment seamlessly, almost making you forget that they are animated in the first place. Despite dozens of viewings and many future imitations, I am still wowed at the sheer impressiveness of the visuals.
Commenting on the superb effects reminds me of a story posted on IMDBs trivia page. According to the story, Bob Hoskins' young son refused to speak to his father for two weeks after seeing the movie. When he was finally asked why, he said he was angry that his father got to work with all those cartoon characters and he was never given a chance to meet them.
Robert Zemeckis is probably the only director alive that loves special effects more than George Lucas. He is the kind of visionary that always knows what he wants before it comes time to make it happen. With a strong script under his arm by Peter Seaman and Jeffrey Price and with an enormous budget to work with, Zemeckis has created something truly special. He should be proud.
As far as flaws go, I only noticed one glaring one. Valiant becomes motivated to find the truth only after noticing that one of his photographs has the tiny image of Acme's will sticking out of his coat pocket. Since that picture was released to the public, I find it hard to believe that only Valiant was able to notice it while the rest of the Hollywood's law enforcement were busy chasing after Roger. There shouldn't have been any doubt of the will's existence but the screenwriters decided to ignore that in order to advance the plot forward.
Everything else works. From the visuals, to the humor, to Christopher Lloyd's chilling villain performance.....just the overall fun factor of this film should be enough to please both adults and children alike. If you haven't seen it yet, don't wait any longer.
There are rumors of a sequel in the works. It may actually be the perfect time for one. Classic hand-drawn characters like Roger Rabbit have became almost entirely phased out and replaced by advanced computer technology. Perhaps the sequel can feature an out-of-work Roger struggling to find his place in a world that has nearly forgotten about him. A scene in the original makes reference to this idea when we see Betty Boop waiting tables at the Ink and Paint club because "life's been slow since cartoons changed to color." If the sequel can provide even half the imagination of its predecessor, I would welcome it with open arms.
There is only one way to kill a werewolf. Shoot it with a silver bullet. There is more than one way to make a werewolf movie. This latest revisitation of the iconic Wolfman character takes a few chances and ultimately serves as a throwback to classic monster movies from a different generation of Hollywood. Your enjoyment of this picture will depend greatly on your personal affection for that generation and the genre.
Benicio del Toro plays Shakespearean actor Lawrence Talbot who receives a letter informing him of the disappearance of his brother. Summoned to the home of his estranged father Sir John Talbot (Anthony Hopkins), Lawrence soon learns that his brother was in fact murdered in mysterious fashion that has the locals baffled. Rumors arise of gypsies or possibly wild bears that may have attacked the victim in the dark woods surrounding the estate. Lawrence confronts the murderer face-to-face or should I say skin-to-fur at a gypsy camp where the residents hoped to confront him/her/it and restore order to the panicked town.
His brother's murderer is.....you guessed it.....a werewolf. One that rampages during the night of every full moon and destroys any living thing unfortunate enough to cross its path. Lawrence gets into a scuffle with the creature and lives, but not without receiving a nasty bite on the shoulder.
Following the incident, Lawrence begins to have nightmares of his past, mainly ones about the death of his mother years ago who died under equally disturbing circumstances. He wonders if the two deaths could have been at all connected. But before that mystery can be solved, Lawrence's bite wound seems to have taken control of his soul and he begins to take on the attributes of the creature that put him in that state. All the while, Sir John seems to take on a morbid fascination with Lawrence's condition and acts much less surprised about the events unfolding than anyone else.
The best way to describe the style of The Wolfman is classical. Though the film is shot in color, there are many nods to oldschool black-and-white filming techniques. There are many establishing and wide-angle shots that add mood to the setting. Different shades of shadow is used to add depth to scenes. Danny Elfman's musical score is perfect for the tone. His trademark synth is virtually absent. In its place is a loud orchestra that often reminded me of the classic Dracula and Frankenstein films.
Since the movie is not a full-scale homage, there are also modern techniques used. Jump scares for the nightmare scenes as well as the use of CGI during the action and transformation scenes allow the movie to avoid finding itself strictly in arthouse clubs. The ratio of old-to-new style is approximately 50/50. Some may find this to be distracting. I found it intriguing.
I watched this film with everyone in my immediate family and I was the only one that liked it. Movies like this are not often made anymore. It is not campy but it is outrageous enough to be compared with the other B-movies of Hollywood's past such as The Blob. The lack of depth and predictable nature of the plot may turn off today's hard-to-please crowd. For those that appreciate bold film making or have a soft spot for the classic monster movie, The Wolfman is a worthwhile watch.
