Spider-Man: Across the Spider Verse (dir. by Joachim Dos Santos, Kemp Powers and Justin K. Thompson)

Posted on June 4, 2023 by Leonard Wilson

I broke a few rules with Spider-Man: Across the Spider Verse last Thursday at my local theatre. It was near empty, so thankfully, I didn’t disrupt things too much. I became that guy down in front that needed to be shushed because he was either finger pointing at something or exclaimed “Oh crap!” a little too loud. 2023 has given us many great films so far, but right now, Spider-Man: Across the Spider Verse is the frontrunner for the any awards for animation. As the ending credits rolled, I took a deep breath & rose on shaky legs, an experience that only hits me when I’m up very high staring over a ledge or adrenaline kicks in. I lost myself in that movie.

Or perhaps I’m just growing old.

Either way, Across the Spider Verse takes everything great about the Academy Award Winner Into the Spider Verse and turns it up a notch. The best experience is to go in as blind as you can. There are no real spoilers here (or at least, only a few), though times are changing. Within 20 hours of the film’s release, we already had videos on YouTube to help understand the ending and tons of Tiktokers posting in-theatre video. There’s almost no real reason to ever have to watch a movie in the theatre or maybe even write about one, although the experience is worth it. I’m somewhat jaded, though writing about movies is still fun, at least. Across the Spider Verse and it’s message of doing one’s own thing is inspiring. This is less of a review and more of just my experience with the movie.

Across the Spider Verse continues the tale of Miles Morales (Shameik Moore, Dope), the Official Spider-Man for his universe. Where the first story helped to flesh out the notion that anyone can put on the mask and use their abilities, this film focuses on the weight of responsibility that comes with it. Miles is doing great for himself. He’s come into his own with his powers, and does good with the city. He’s okay with his grades, but his relationship with his parents Rio (Luna Lauren Velez, The First Purge) and Jefferson (Brian Tyree-Henry, Bullet Train) could use some help since he’s keeping his other identity a secret . When Miles is visited by Gwen (Hailee Steinfeld, Bumblebee) on a mission of her own, he finds himself thrust into an adventure he’s not quite ready for. I missed the main trailers for this, which does give away some major plot points. That could also be a factor in why I enjoyed it so much. Everything, or most of it was new to me.

Three new directors are taking on the mantle for this sequel. This time around we have Avatar: The Legend of Korra’s Joachim Dos Santos, Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs Producer Justin K. Thompson (who also was a producer for Into the Spider Verse) and One Night In Miami’s Kemp Powers (who also wrote Disney/Pixar’s Academy Award Winner, Soul). The story still belongs to Christopher Miller and Phil Lord, who are best known for the 21 Jump Street , The Lego Movies and most recently, The Mitchells vs. The Machines. I still argue that Lord Miller’s version of Solo could have been magic, but that’s another story.

The story in Across the Spider Verse builds off of the original in a number of ways, and the cast helps to flesh things out. New additions include Oscar Isaac’s (Triple Frontier) Miguel O’Hara, a Spider Man charged with protecting the Spider Verse. We also have Issa Rae (HBO’s A Black Lady Sketch Show, Little) as the motorcycle riding Jessica Drew, Academy Award Winner Daniel Kaluuya (Judas and the Black Messiah) as a punk rock Spider-Man named Brodie. As everyone’s seen in the trailers, Jake Johnson (Tag) is back as Peter B. Parker with a new addition in his life. The film is peppered with other cast members and cameos – much like the party sequence in The Lego Batman Movie, but ultimately, it’s Moore and Steinfeld’s characters that carry the most weight. It felt great and nerve wracking to worry about the fates of these characters.

My cousin would be particularly happy to find that the film passes what she refers to as the “Supernatural” Test. From her point of view, when Bela Talbot was introduced to the series Supernatural, Sam and Dean Winchester were rendered stupid in her presence. It was almost as if they just discovered hunting monsters. Miles and Gwen make for a great pair while still managing to be amazing at what they do separately. This doesn’t mean there’s a lack of vulnerability and/or quirkiness between the two, but when it counts, they both manage to bring something to the table.

There’s love and creativity flowing through every frame of Across the Spider Verse. Much like the original, colors are vibrant, and you truly feel as if you’re moving through the pages of your favorite comic book (dots and all). There are tons of blink-and-you’ll-miss-them moments thoughout the movie that warrant a 2nd (or 3rd) viewing or at least a major scrub through when the film reaches streaming. The cities are full of life and the action sequences are wonderful to behold. I can’t begin to wonder how any of it looks on an IMAX screen.

Composer Daniel Pemberton (The Bad Guys) also deserves a lot of love, as well as as the additional side music. He builds on the original themes, while adding some new ones in the process. If anything, some of the music may have been too loud.

Overall, Spider-Man: Across the Spider Verse is a near perfect sequel that had me cheering on the heroes and biting my nails at the unfolding story.

It’s the little things that has Sony Pictures Animation and Spider-Man: Across the Spider Verse working some magic.

Film Review: Deadpool 2 (dir by David Leitch)

Posted on May 24, 2018 by Lisa Marie Bowman

“From the studio that killed Wolverine!” the poster proclaims.

“Directed by the man who killed John Wick’s dog” the opening credits announce.

Deadpool 2 is so meta that it even opens with a close-up of a figurine of Hugh Jackman impaled on a rock or a branch or whatever it was that finally killed him at the end of Logan. Deadpool, the irrepressible and nearly indestructible mercenary played by Ryan Reynolds, announces that he’s willing to accept the challenge posed by Logan‘s tragic ending. Deadpool promises us that, in the movie we’re about to watch, he’ll die as well. Deadpool then proceeds to blow himself up.

Of course, those of us who have seen first Deadpool film know better than to panic when Deadpool’s severed head flies at the camera. Deadpool heals so quickly that, as long as his powers are working, he can’t be killed. If he gets shot or stabbed, the wound heals almost immediately. Broken bones mend themselves in record time. When Deadpool literally gets ripped in half, he promptly starts to grow new legs. Without his powers, of course, Deadpool would have died a long time ago. He has cancer, a fact that the film doesn’t dwell upon but which still adds a bit of unexpected depth to the character and his trademark dark humor.

Of course, Deadpool is not just unique because his near-immortality. Deadpool is also unique in that he, and he alone, understands that he’s a character in a movie. Even more importantly, he understands that he’s a character who is being played by an actor named Ryan Reynolds. (Some of Deadpool 2‘s best jokes — which I won’t spoil here — are at the expense of some of Reynolds’s earlier career choices.) While everyone else in the film is taking things very seriously, as characters in comic book films tend to do, Deadpool is pointing out all of the clichés and even the occasional plot hole. When Cable (Josh Brolin), a cyborg warrior from the future, offers up a hasty explanation for why he can’t just use time travel to solve all of his problems, Deadpool dismisses it as “lazy writing.”

With the monster success of Wonder Woman, Infinity War, and Black Panther, Deadpool is the hero that we now need. I mean, let’s be honest. Comic books movies can be a lot of fun and, right now, we’re living in the golden age of super hero cinema. At the same time, these films can occasionally get a little bit pompous. Think about the unrelenting grimness of the DC films. Think about all the sturm und drang that made up the undeniably effectively ending of Infinity War. It in no way detracts from those films to say that Deadpool’s refusal to take either himself or the movie too seriously often feels like a breath of fresh air. Deadpool is the one hero who is willing to say to the audience, “Yes, it’s all ludicrous and silly and occasionally a little bit lazy. Isn’t it great?”

And yet, even with all that in mind, Deadpool 2 has a surprisingly big heart. Even while it encourages us to laugh as its excesses, the sequel makes clear that it has a bit more on its mind than the first film. Deadpool 2‘s plot deals with the efforts of both Deadpool and Cable to track down an angry mutant who goes by the somewhat regrettable name of Firefist (Julian Dennison). Cable has come from the future to kill Firefist and prevent him from eventually destroying the world with his anger. As for Deadpool, he feels that the spirit of someone he loved wants him to save Firefist. As for Firefist himself, he’s an escapee from the Essex Home For Mutant Rehabilitation, a Hellish orphanage where the hypocritical headmaster and his perverted staff attempt to torture young mutants into being normal human beings. The parallel to conversion therapy is an obvious one and there’s always just enough outrage underneath the film’s humor.

Deadpool 2 is a fast-moving and quick-witted sequel and Ryan Reynolds is, once again, perfect in the role of the demented lead character. The jokes are nonstop and fortunately, so is the action. There’s a lengthy fight between Cable and Deadpool that’s destined to go down as a classic. Another exciting scene opens with parachutes and ends with … well, I can’t tell you. I won’t spoil it, beyond to say that sometimes, being a hero is all about good luck. Deadpool 2 is an ultra-violent, ultra-profane action-comedy with a heart of iron pyrite. It’s not a film to take the kids too. Deadpool himself points that out. (He also points out that the babysitter is probably stoned by now.) However, Deadpool also says that this sequel is a film about family and, amazingly enough, it turns out that he’s not lying.

So far, 2018 has been the year of the comic book movie and Deadpool 2 is a welcome addition.

Film Review: Ghostbusters (dir by Paul Feig)

Posted on July 17, 2016 by Lisa Marie Bowman

If you need any further proof that 2016 is a screwed-up year, just consider the fact that Ghostbusters, an entertaining but ultimately rather mild-mannered and innocuous summer action/comedy, has become the center of one of the biggest controversies of the year.

It all started, of course, when the reboot was first announced. Fanboys reacted with outrage, offended that Hollywood would even consider remaking a film that was apparently one of the defining moments of their childhood. Then, it was announced that Ghostbusters would feature an all-female cast and it would be directed by Paul Feig, the director of Bridesmaids. The howls of outrage grew even louder. Then that infamous trailer was released and even I felt that trailer sucked. I wasn not alone because the trailer quickly became one of the most disliked videos in the history of YouTube. Reading the comments underneath that trailer was literally like finding yourself trapped in a production of Marat/Sade.

Suddenly, in the eyes of very vocal group of internet trolls, the reboot of Ghostbusters went from being simply another dubious idea to being a crime against humanity. And the trolls were so obnoxious that they managed to turn this big-budget, studio-backed production into an underdog. Here was a movie directed by one of Hollywood’s biggest directors and starring some of Hollywood’s hottest stars and suddenly, it had become David in a biblical showdown with the Goliaths of internet.

And then it happened. Earlier last week, Ghostbusters was finally screened for critics. The first reviews started to come in and they were surprisingly positive. In fact, they were so positive that I found myself distrusting them. I found myself wondering if critics were reacting to the film or if they were simply trying to prove that they were better than the trolls who leave obscene comments on YouTube.

Which was true, I wondered. Was Ghostbusters the worst film ever made or was it the greatest? Or was it perhaps just possible that Ghostbusters would turn out to be a typical summer film?

With all the controversy, it’s tempting to overpraise a film like Ghostbusters. Battle lines have been drawn and sometimes, I feel as if I’m being told that failing to declare Ghostbusters to be the greatest and most important comedy of all time is the equivalent of letting the trolls win.

Well, that’s not true. Ghostbusters is not the greatest or the most important comedy of all time but you know what? Ghostbusters is good. Ghostbusters is entertaining. Especially during the first half, it’s full of laugh out loud moments. At times, Ghostbusters is everything that you could hope for.

No, it’s not a perfect film. Paul Feig is a great comedy director but, in this film at least, his direction of the big action sequences often feels uninspired (especially when compared to his previous work on Spy). The final fourth of the film gets bogged down in CGI and the film goes from being a clever comedy to being just another summer spectacle. Even the one-liners, which flowed so naturally at the start of the film, feel forced during the final half of the film. Ghostbusters is good but it never quite becomes great.

Here’s what did work: the cast. As he previously proved with Bridesmaids, Paul Feig is a director who is uniquely skilled at creating and showcasing a strong comedic ensemble. Kristen Wiig plays Erin Gilbert, who is denied tenure at Columbia when it is discovered that a book she wrote on the paranormal has been republished and is being sold, on Amazon, by her former best friend, Dr. Abby Yates (Melissa McCarthy). When Erin goes to confront Abby, she not only meets Abby’s newest colleague, Dr. Jillian Holtzmann (Kate McKinnon) but she also gets dragged into investigating an actual case of paranormal activity.. Soon, Erin, Abby, and Holtzmann are investigating hauntings and capturing ghosts, all with the secret approval of the Mayor of New York (Andy Garcia). Of course, for PR reasons, the mayor’s office has to continually disavow the Ghostbusters and occasionally have them arrested. Working alongside the three scientists are Patty (Leslie Jones), who apparently knows the history of every building in New York, and Kevin (Chris Hemsworth), their adorably stupid receptionist.

As written, both Patty and Kevin are fairly thin characters. Kevin’s the handsome dumb guy. Patty is streetwise and sassy. But both Hemsworth and Jones give such enthusiastic and sincere performances that they transcend the stereotypical nature of their roles. At times, Kevin runs the risk of becoming too cartoonish for even a Ghostbusters film. But if you can’t laugh at Chris Hemsworth explaining that he took the lenses out of his glasses because they were always getting dirty, what can you laugh at?

Erin is an interesting character and Kristen Wiig deserves a lot of credit for her performance. Erin is actually given a fairly affecting backstory, centering around how she was haunted by the ghost of the old woman who used to live next door to her. Erin is a former believer, someone who, in order to succeed in the “real” world, gave up her beliefs and conformed to the expectations of society. When she actually meets a ghost, it’s more than just a confirmation of the supernatural. It’s a chance for Erin to finally embrace who she truly is and what she truly cares about. When she and the other ghostbusters chase after evil spirits, Erin is not just doing a job. Instead, she’s finally found somewhere where she belongs. She no longer has to pretend to be someone that she isn’t. Wiig plays the role with just the right touch of neurotic wonder. She grounds the entire film.

But the true star of the film is Kate McKinnon. Whether she’s cheerfully smiling as a ghost vomits all over her colleagues or cheerfully explaining how easily their equipment could kill them all, Holtzmann is the greatest character in the film and McKinnon gives the best performance. If Wiig grounds the film, McKinnon provides it with a truly demented soul.

The first half of the movie, which focuses on the relationships between the characters and features snappy and endlessly quotable dialogue, is wonderful and I was thrilled while watching it, convinced that the entire movie would be as good as the first hour. However, the second half of the film gets bogged down in a rather predictable plot and the final action sequences could have just as easily been lifted from Pixels or one of The Avengers movies. The surviving cast of the original Ghostbusters all show up in cameos that are, at best, inoffensive and, at worst, groan-worthy. The end result is rather uneven. If the film had maintained the momentum of that first hour, it would be a classic. But that second half transforms it into just another entertaining but not quite memorable summer action film.

That said, Paul Feig is an excellent comedy director and let’s hope that he never gets so self-important that he ends up turning into Jay Roach. Hopefully, if there is a sequel, Feig will return to direct it and Kate McKinnon will have an even bigger role.