La La Land Review

La La Land

Keith: "How are you gonna be a revolutionary if you're such a traditionalist? You hold onto the past, but jazz is about the future."

     "La La Land" is directed by Damien Chazelle ("Whiplash", "Guy and Madeline on a Park Bench") and stars Ryan Gosling as Sebastian, Emma Stone as Mia, John Legend as Keith,  Rosemarie DeWitt as Laura, J.K. Simmons as Bill, Callie Hernandez as Tracy, Jessica Rothe as Alexis, Sonoya Mizuno as Caitlin, Finn Wittrock as Greg, Tom Everett Scott as David, Damon Gupton as Harry, and Jason Fuchs as Carlo.

Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone are back together for the third time and it's amazing!

     Modern day Los Angeles is the place where you want to make a name for yourself. The dog-eat-dog town is where Mia and Sebastian's paths cross where, respectively, she wants to become and actress and he want to run a jazz club. This romantic musical filled with dance numbers and catchy songs is by the same guy who directed "Whiplash" so yeah, you'll get a good amount of emotions out of this, but good ones!

Ryan learned to play piano (and really well) for this movie. His chops for the keys definitely show.

     In a world of the same old, same old, we rarely get a film that brings back a once beloved genre for the modern viewer. "La La Land" is the musical that gets people to dig musicals, especially with names like Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone attached. With the power of jazz at its fingertips, this film feels straight out of the 1950s where film was more or less free of conventional cinema (that may be due to cinema history not being that old). In any case, "La La Land"'s main point was the music and the story. It hit the nail on the head for what this kind of film is supposed to do, and more, but I'll get into that a little later. Chazele's "Whiplash" gave us viewers a little taste of the dense music knowledge that he possesses. I mean, if you are somehow in the music career or pursuing it or even have been in your band class when you were in school, then you know the struggle of learning to, perhaps not master, but definitely keep up with the expectations of a conductor. While "La La Land" doesn't have that dick of a character, Chazelle still incorporates music as being the main element to the entire film. His direction, on top of that, is phenomenally precise. And don't even get me started on the music itself. I can't praise the filmmakers and composers enough for the complicated choreographed dance numbers and the catchy as f**k songs, including what may be one of my favorite songs made for a movie, "City of Stars". He has my vote for best director for a motion picture. Seriously, his forthcoming films are ones to be super f***ing excited for.

Damien Chazelle is only 30-years-old. Can you believe the talent this guy has at such a young age? Crazy.

     Where "La La Land" transcends from the good musical into one of the best films this year is in its story and its characters (as well as acting). Although a bit cheesy and saturated in the way its presented, it was justified to do that when portraying a modern romance disguised as an old fashioned musical. I felt so attached to Mia and Sebastian's romantic meets when talking about jazz and telling anecdotes about their dreams. They're both down-to-Earth people who just want each other to succeed. This is where the heartbreak begins because they just want each other to succeed so bad that they may have to do things that they don't want to do. It's a sad and beautiful story of two aspiring creative minds that I can see anybody in today's world replacing them (aside from the dancing and music at random times). Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone do an incredible job playing these characters. I'm not surprised at all they are nominated for Golden Globes and are eyed for best actor and actress, respectively, at the Academy Awards.

Jazz hands! Keep up the f***ing awesome work guys!

     "La La Land" is, no doubt in my mind, one of my personal favorite movies of the year. I saw it only once, but I'm itching to see it again in theaters. The soundtrack is elegant and gorgeous, the acting is superb, the directing is almost perfect in every shot (incredibly hard to do with musicals, by the way), and, I didn't mention it, but the cinematography is stunning. I felt like I was transported to 1952 (RIP Debbie Reynolds) watching a musical on the big screen. I can't wait when or if Broadway will take "La La Land" under their wing and create another dazzling live musical.

5/5

PRO

• Damien Chazelle's natural directing skills and musical knowledge
• Music and Dance numbers
• Beautiful romance between dreamers
• Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone are great together once again

CON

• None

"La La Land" is rated PG-13 for some language

Click here to watch the trailer

"La La Land" is in theaters everywhere now

     Thanks for reading, everybody! I really do appreciate it. Please subscribe to my blog and follow me on Facebook and Twitter to receive updates on new reviews and trailer drops. Also, if you've already seen "La La Land", comment and let me know what you think of it. Thanks again!

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story Review

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story

Chirrut Îmwe: "I'm one with the Force, and the Force is with me."

     "Rogue One: A Star Wars Story" is directed by Gareth Edwards ("Godzilla" (2014), "Monsters") and stars Felicity Jones as Jyn Erso, Diego Luna as Cassian Andor, Ben Mendelsohn as Orson Krennic, Mads Mikkelson as Galen Erso, Alan Tudyk as K-2SO, Donnie Yen as Chirrut Îmwe, Wen Jiang as Baze Malbus, Riz Ahmed as Bodhi Rook, and Forest Whitaker as Saw Gerrera.

And guess who else is back???

     Taking place just before "Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope", the Rebellion has received information about the Empire building a planet destroying weapon called the Death Star. Criminal Jyn Erso is asked by the Rebellion to lead them to her father, Galen Erso, who holds the plans to the Death Star. On the way, she and her fellow soldiers encounter difficulties in obtaining the plans including warfare and a Sith lord.

It's always a beam in the sky, isn't it?

     The fact that "Rogue One: A Star Wars Story" is the second "Star Wars" film in a line of 6 "Star Wars" film until 2020, perhaps, and that it's also the first stand alone film set in the "Star Wars" universe has me squealing like a little kid. From the looks of the trailer, I was hopeful and cocky that "Rogue One" would be fantastic. My hopes were definitely met. I enjoyed "Rogue One" from start to finish. Sure I might be a little more partial to the saga, but I think that's because there is so much more material on the main plot than in this film. The biggest reason that makes "Rogue One" so great, though, is how the Rebellion obtains the Death Star plans: the big war scene in the third act. This is the war you want to watch in a "Star Wars" movie. The feeling of people fighting and killing for a good cause, but still being incredibly human at the same time is something yet to be witnessed in a "Star Wars" film. The Rebels say it themselves; they've done bad things for the Rebellion, but stuff their horrific acts in the back in their minds thinking that they're fighting for good. "Rogue One" is a more down-to-Earth film in a universe filled with extraordinary events.

It's all out war with the Rebellion facing off against the Empire.

     "Rogue One" is not a perfect movie, by any means. In fact, I would say that "The Force Awakens" is just a bit better, in my humble opinion. Some of the main characters in "Rogue One" weren't as fleshed out as I wanted them to be, especially since the ones that aren't have big parts in the film. Don't get me wrong, I f***ing loved all the characters' personalities. They're all quite compelling for what they do and how they're portrayed. The always beautiful and talented Felicity Jones carries the film well as Jyn Erso, Diego Luna sides with Felicity Jones as the steadfast Rebel Cassian Andor, and Alan Tudyk lends his voice as the standout character (for me, that is) K-2SO. Jyn, being the protagonist that we care for and follow, is the character with the most back story; however, with the other characters, there isn't too much information about their history to get on a certain level of empathy that I wanted to feel for a movie that surrounds itself with a tight knit group. All in all, I enjoyed the characters and how they were portrayed, but the writing could have been revised a little bit more to bring out a personal connection with them.

K-2SO is a beautiful and soulfully mortal machine.

     You'll all have a good time with "Rogue One", even if you aren't a "Star Wars" geek. I know I sure as hell don't know as much about the universe as someone who reads the books and plays the video games to get more into the lore of the stories. I still had fun. Though, it would be to your advantage to be a "Star Wars" fan to get all the little Easter eggs and hidden messages that are throw backs to "A New Hope". Who am I kidding though? It's a "Star Wars" movie. Almost everyone is going to see it whether I say to or not to. The signiture John Williams score, beautiful CGI, and fascinating animatronics are all found in bulk in "Rogue One". These elements plus the characters are what make "Star Wars" "Star Wars" so you won't be disappointed.

4.5/5

PRO

• In-depth and unseen look at Rebellion
• "Star Wars"-isms are abundant
• Cool characters played phenomenally by top tier actors/actresses...

CON

• ...But the characters weren't as fleshed out as previous "Star Wars" movie characters

"Rogue One: A Star Wars Story" is rated PG-13 for extended sequences of sci-fi violence and action

Click here to watch the trailer

"Rogue One: A Star Wars Story" is in theaters everywhere now

     Thanks for reading, everybody! I really do appreciate it. Please subscribe to my blog and follow me on Facebook and Twitter to receive updates on new reviews and trailer drops. Also, if you've already seen "Rogue One: A Star Wars Story", comment and let me know what you think of it. Thanks again!

Office Christmas Party Review

Office Christmas Party

Mary: "Tonight the decision you make will have consequences that will haunt you for the rest of your professional lives."

     "Office Christmas Party" is directed by Josh Grodon ("Blades of Glory", "The Switch") and Will Speck ("Blades of Glory", "The Switch") and stars Jason Bateman as Josh Parker, T.J. Miller as Clay Vanstone, Olivia Munn as Tracey Hughes, Jennifer Aniston as Carol Vanstone, Kate McKinnon as Mary, Courtney B. Vance as Walter Davis, Rob Corddry as Jeremy, Vanessa Bayer as Allison, Jillian Bell as Trina, Randall Park as Fred, Sam Richardson as Joel, Karan Soni as Nate, Jamie Chung as Meghan, Da'Vine Joy Randolph as Carla, and Abbey Lee as Savannah.

Holy shit! Is that Zack Galifianakis from "The Hangover"? Crossover!

     Clay Vanstone heads the Chicago branch of a tech company called Zenotek. His sister and CEO of Zenotek, Carol Vanstone, promises to shut down Clay's branch because they're not making the profits she's expecting and she doesn't like Clay for shit. Unless Clay and his two other friends/employees, Josh and Olivia, can land a deal with Walter Davis and his company to gain profit, all of Chicago's Zenotek's employees will be fired just in time for Christmas. The only, and super logical, way to land the deal is with a huge-ass fucking party for the ages. Anything and everything can happen on party night.

Literally anything...so have fun!

     We've hit that time of the year when we expect a whole bunch of holiday themed films to give off that seasoned feeling. "Office Christmas Party" tries to be warmhearted, but it only succeeds in parts. The biggest gripe I have with this movie is that when I walked out of the theater I felt like I've seen the film before. I could predict almost everything that was going to happen. "Office Christmas Party" is a paint-by-numbers film that is as conventional as a fucking monkey is to trees. If you don't like that analogy, you can fuck off. I don't mean that in a rude way though. Anyway, "Office Christmas Party" doesn't do anything new; however, that isn't the worst thing you can do with a movie that builds up to a free-for-all party extravaganza. I quite enjoyed the film for the most part. It was entertaining, which is all I asked for from this movie. I wanted to laugh and I laughed. Sometimes the script got too carried away in surface level character development when it either could have used much more or much less. Nevertheless, the charm of the characters got to me and that's one of the major reasons why "Office Christmas Party" was entertaining.

I've got to admit, the costume probably made T.J. more likable.

     When the characters are the best part of a movie, you know it can't be that bad...well, I think my review of "Suicide Squad" may beg to differ. Still, I assumed that most, if not all, of the characters in "Office Christmas Party" would fucking blow. They didn't! In fact, the majority were damn funny and/or tolerable. Jason Bateman does his normal Jason Bateman shit ("been there, done that" kind of performance) and I didn't really care for the people involved with the prostitution ring like Jillian Bell's Trina and Abbey Lee's Savannah. I just didn't find those characters as delightful as T.J. Miller's Clay Vanstone, Jennifer Aniston's Carol Vanstone, and Kate McKinnon's Mary. Yeah, Kate McKinnon surprised the hell out of me here. She, like her true persona and not those portrayed on screen, is hilarious in "Office Christmas Party". T.J. is just a likable douchebag to me. I think it's because I'm a likable-ish douchebag too...I have to rethink my life now. *Life thought over*. Unfortunately, I had expectations that I was going to laugh more often than what I actually got. What I thought would suck was the story, which is partly true considering the end started to drive towards a fantastical element. consequences happen incredibly coincidentally. Some of the events that occurred, I just don't buy for one second. I could believe the raging party up to a point, but what the fuck? How can you get away with shit like a car crash into a power grid? Also, there's a point when an invention of Olivia Munn's Tracey Hughes connects people to the internet via light bulbs and it saves the day...What? I'm not believing that shit for a fucking second.

The biggest mystery of all was how nobody succumbed to fucking alcohol poisoning. It blows my mind.

     Even after the unbelievable scenarios that happened in the third act and the poor story that I wasn't too involved or excited for, I still enjoyed "Office Christmas Party" for pure entertainment. I think it's a movie that you can get drunk with your friends and watch. I wouldn't make watching this film a holiday tradition because there are plenty of other better films to watch as tradition. "Office Christmas Party" makes me laugh at times and it keeps me connected with the characters. It's a film that gives and keeps on not giving. Give yourself a couple of weeks and you'll forget this movie existed.

2.9/5

PRO

• Entertaining enough
• Characters keep the film going

CON

• Nothing new with story; standard
• Face-palm worthy scenarios in third act

"Office Christmas Party" is rated R for crude sexual content and language throughout, drug use and graphic nudity

Click here to watch the trailer

"Office Christmas Party" is in theaters everywhere now

     Thanks for reading, everybody! I really do appreciate it. Please subscribe to my blog and follow me on Facebook and Twitter to receive updates on new reviews and trailer drops. Also, if you've already seen "Office Christmas Party", comment and let me know what you think of it. Thanks again!

Check This One Out! - Upstream Color

Check This One Out! - Upstream Color

Jeff: "I want to go where you go."

     "Upstream Color" is directed by Shane Carruth ("Primer") and stars Amy Seimetz as Kris, Shane Carruth as Jeff, and Andrew Sensenig as The Sampler.

Oh, and some pigs are in it too.

     Bare with me. I'm going to try my best to explain the plot the best I can: An emotionally damaged woman and a man with a depressing past are drawn to each other. Something about hypnosis and parasites that connect people to others' memories...pigs and cancer...f**k. This is so difficult. It's a film about connections, identities, and illusions.

This is me trying to understand the film.

     Why am I suggesting this as a film that you should watch? The simple answer is "Upstream Color" is change from conventional films. Like my review of "Paterson", the films that defy film norms and don't stick to the rules of a narrative story are the refreshing pain killers that help rectify the idea of film being an art. In the case of "Upstream Color", the specific details that make this film art are the sound designs, the cinematography, and the screenplay. A warning before you watch this film: you're not going to be able to understand the film fully after a first watch. Hell, you might not even get much more info after the second viewing. This is a film that contains many subjective themes that forces you to think and discuss with others. The sound design is just a beautiful addition to "Upstream Color" that mesmerizes me still. The birds chirping, a rock falling in a tunnel, and more natural everyday noises sound so crisp. It's probably beneficial that The Sampler captures random noises with his microphone (I don't understand why he does that. Please someone explain). "Upstream Color" lives up to its second word of the title. The film looks authentic. It looks like an upscale and well produced version of life. Lens flares are used at times, and while I don't always appreciate over usage of lens flare *ahem, "Star Trek", ahem*, it works in this film. This is a film that I truly believe shouldn't be good. Seriously. However, even though the plot was difficult to follow, I was hypnotized by what "Upstream Color" had to offer. Shan Carruth knows how to make mystery films with a screenplay that has a broad path to walk down, yet somehow attacks the audience with technical and story-based charm.

A realistic love story that isn't totally realistic at all. Make sense? Yeah, it doesn't to me either. It's so beautiful though!

     Shane Carruth directed, wrote, acted, edited and composed the music for "Upstream Color". He did almost the same thing for his previous and only other film: the cult classic "Primer". The only other person that I know can do all of that is Santa Clause. That guy can be anywhere and everywhere. Wait...is Shane Carruth Santa? Naw...Oh, wow. Anyway, "Upstream Color" takes a film that could have been a disaster into a different direction that feels so fresh and so fascinating. "Upstream Color" could take a handful of views to come close to learning every part of the story. I won't know. I've come to terms with it. After seeing a worm-like organism burrowing into a person's bloodstream to let the host go from all consciousness, I gave up (that's at the beginning).

What?! It's him!

"Upstream Color" is not rated

Click here to watch the trailer

"Upstream Color" is now available on DVD, Blu-ray, and digital download

     Thanks for reading, everybody! I really do appreciate it. Please subscribe to my blog and follow me on Facebook and Twitter to receive updates on new reviews and trailer drops. Also, if you've already seen "Upstream Color", comment and let me know what you think of it. Thanks again!

Moonlight Review

Moonlight

Juan: "At some point, you gotta decide for yourself who you're going to be. Can't let nobody make that decision for you."

     "Moonlight" is directed by Barry Jenkins ("Medicine for Melancholy") and stars Alex R. Hibbert as Little, Jaden Piner (9), Ashton Sanders as Chiron, Jharrel Jerome as Kevin (16), Trevante Rhodes as Black, André Holland as Kevin, Mahershala Ali as Juan, Janelle Monáe as Teresa, and Naomie Harris as Paula.

Twist: This film is set in an alternate Marvel Universe where Cottonmouth is actually a nice guy (a little "Luke Cage" joke there).

     The three stages of a boy named Chiron are shown throughout major points of his life where he discovers more about his sexuality and love. With no father figure, his drug-addicted mom yelling homosexual slurs to him, and him being bullied, Chiron has a tough time admitting his true feelings for his longtime friend. It's coming-out-of-the-closet story filled with love and heartbreak. You will feel the feels.

When I say all the feels, I mean ALL the feels.

     Wow! This fall has made up for the s**t pile of movies that we got over the summer. Many of them have been huge disappointments. "Moonlight" alone probably has made up for like half of the summer movie disasters. I've heard the buzz about this movie ever since it premiered at the various film festivals it was shown at. Undoubtedly, I was excited to see it. The finished product knocked my heart around a good amount of times and I now see why the buzz was so good. Let me tell you now that "Moonlight" is going to appear on my top 10 of the year list. What surprised me the most is how the storytelling worked to its advantage. This movie is told in three different parts showing Chiron's understanding of his homosexuality. It's a big risk for a film to use that technique of storytelling since there are gaps of time that could potentially contain something of importance. At times, we, as an audience, are just expected to know what happened during that time or the plot keeps moving forward with exposition scenes. This contains none of that. Chiron's experiences on screen are when he is a little kid, a teenager, and an adult. There are big time gaps and it still feels like the same Chiron as an adult is the same as him being a kid. The actors, by the way, are unbelievably talented. "Moonlight" is comprised of an all black and talented cast. It's a film that I didn't expect to have one race surrounding a boy that feels through his sexuality like this. The thing is, I saw this as a human film. People in urban neighborhoods discover themselves and no film has truly captured it as well as "Moonlight" has.

Great performance all around, but the three who play Chiron are the standouts.

     The music, the cinematography, the direction, and all the other technicalities that make a movie pop are all so perfect in "Moonlight". I can't think of one mistake that "Moonlight" makes. It's a beautiful film with beautiful performance and a beautiful screenplay. I can't say anything more than, "Go watch this movie." This is, without a doubt, going to garner an nomination for best picture. I have no gripes with this "Moonlight" so I'm going to end my review here because there isn't anything more I ought to talk about without spoiling or giving away an experience that deserves to be felt by everybody. "Moonlight" is a modern masterpiece.

5/5

PRO

• Fluid movement of Chiron's experiences works perfectly
• A beautiful and human love story; it isn't told enough in film
• Performances
• Effective use of music, directing, writing, and cinematography

CON

• None

"Moonlight" is rated R for some sexuality, drug use, brief violence and language throughout

Click here to watch the trailer

"Moonlight" is in select theaters now

     Thanks for reading, everybody! I really do appreciate it. Please subscribe to my blog and follow me on Facebook and Twitter to receive updates on new reviews and trailer drops. Also, if you've seen "Moonlight" already, comment and let me know what you think of it. Thanks again!

Paterson Review

Paterson

Japanese Poet: "A bus driver named Paterson...this is very poetic."

     "Paterson" is directed by Jim Jarmusch ("Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai", "Dead Man", "Broken Flowers") and stars Adam Driver as Paterson, Golshifteh Farahani as Laura, Barry Shabaka Henley as Doc, Chasten Harmon as Marie, and William Jackson Harper as Everett.

Oh, and it also stars a dog who isn't very fond of Paterson.

     In the small town of Paterson, a bus driver, also named Paterson, runs through his daily routine: Get up, go to work, walk the dog, go to a bar, go home and then go to sleep. Monday through Friday are shown; he does the same thing every day, as mundane as it is. However, he writes poetry every day, as well. He writes about what he sees. As boring as that sounds, this film shows that even the littlest things in life can be beautiful.

Even when being a bus driver dealing with annoying passengers, you can still find beauty. Hats off to all the bus drivers out there!

     I was fortunate enough to get to watch "Paterson" at the Mill Valley Film Festival in early October. I put off writing the review mainly so that people could get a chance to see it in the limited theaters it's in. I've wanted to write about it ever since. Now, I get to say that "Paterson" is unlike any movie I have seen in the past decade. There is no quarrel with a villain or an antagonist. There is no clear conflict that Paterson has to overcome. This movie tells the story of a week in a life of an ordinary man writing poetry about the things he sees. That may sound annoying to some, and I can't change that. This movie might not be for everyone. For the ones who are tired of a structured story that we've all seen a thousand times, this is the movie that'll take you out of that experience. It's an inspirational homage to what the average day is and it's beautiful. This is also the best I've seen Adam Driver. His performance is not going to be nominated for an Oscar (the Academy wouldn't go for this), but it's subtle and realistic enough to invite the audience into his head; to see and hear what he sees and hears. This is what allows his poetry to jump off the page and onto the screen.

A man sitting on a bench. Seems boring? Write about it. I guarantee what you write and describe will make your day just a little better.

     This brings me to the element that makes "Paterson" so great: the poetry. The poetry is sincere, but not over-the-top sappy. Paterson writes about his wife sometimes. Sometimes it's about his passengers on the bus or about an idea that's been stuck in his head. The marvelous technique used to express Paterson's poetry to us is Paterson talking in the third person. You can hear his poetic thoughts. The words pop on the screen with handwritten white font. Jim Jarmusch's choices to create a vivid telling of poetry in a day is a minor detail that makes all the difference. My only dispute with "Paterson" is that the replay value isn't too high for me. Hypothetically, if I were on my couch eager to watch a movie, "Paterson" wouldn't be high on my list. I mean, as good as it is, once you see it, you wouldn't really crave to see it again. I could say that about every movie, but this one I mean it especially. I think Jarmusch substituted story for replay. A good choice, but a little disappointed about that.

Adam Driver would be me watching "Paterson" again: enjoyable, for sure, but it's really a medicine for that same old s**t.

     If you get a chance to see "Paterson", go see it. It gives you a break from the beat-for-beat action and plots that are in every movie. I had a great time laughing and smile throughout the film. Although I wouldn't need to see it a second time, I'm elated that I've gotten to see a refreshing film that doesn't rely on anything but a week in the life of a bus driver. Sounds weird to say, right? Well, poetry, of any kind, and film mix together like paint and an empty canvas.

4.8/5

PRO

• Poetry through boring days isn't as boring as you might think
• Adam Driver's subtle and humble performance
• Jim Jarmusch's directing choices with how to present the poetry

CON

•  Not a very high replay value

"Paterson" is rated R for some language

Click here to watch the trailer

"Paterson" is in select theaters now

     Thanks for reading, everybody! I really do appreciate it. Please subscribe to my blog and follow me on Facebook and Twitter to receive updates on new reviews and trailer drops. Also, if you've seen "Paterson", comment and let me know what you think of it. Thanks again!