FILM REVIEW OF ''R.I.P.D.'' (2013)

Actor Jeff Bridges chews the scenery ravenously in the supernatural action-comedy “R.I.P.D.” (**1/2 stars out of ****) where he camps it up as a posthumous Old West marshal.  “Red” director Robert Schwentke and “Clash of the Titans” scenarists Phil Hay and Matt Manfredi have adapted writer Peter M. Lenkov’s Bangsian fantasy that Dark Horse Comics published back in 1999. For the record, a Bangsian fantasy appropriates either a literary figure or a historical personage for a fable laid in the afterlife.  Like Lenkov’s graphic novel, Schwentke’s imaginative but formulaic melodrama emulates both “Ghostbusters” and “Men in Black.”  Ryan Reynolds of “Green Lantern” co-stars as Bridges’ straight-guy sidekick.  As Bridges’ co-star,  Reynolds takes his character a mite more seriously.  He plays a contemporary Boston policeman who perishes in the line of duty.  Meanwhile, charming Mary-Louise Parker of “Weeds” is cast as their supervisor in the Rest In Peace Department.  Despite its hopelessly derivative origins, “R.I.P.D.” qualifies as an above average epic.  Happily, “R.I.P.D.” isn’t a sequel.  This hybrid 'origins' thriller about the after-life often makes for murky melodrama, but the larger-than-life characters and the stalwart cast will keep you interested.  Impressive CGI visual effects, atmospheric cinematography, hilarious sight gags, and a lean and mean 96-minute running time constitute its best qualities.  The worst thing about this Universal Pictures’ comic book adaptation is that it doesn’t always provide enough details for many of its plot holes.  In other words, we learn little about the origins of the R.I.P.D. and its rules.  Nevertheless, the film adaptation is a vast improvement over Lenkov's graphic novel.

 

In “R.I.P.D.,” the dead struggle to evade eternal judgment and hole up indefinitely on Earth.  These amoral minions are designated as ‘deados,’ and they are dastardly.  Remember in the “Men in Black” movies how the bugs concealed themselves in animals and humans?  Just the opposite occurs here.  When the ‘deados’ are exposed, these apparently normal people swell up into misshapen Goliaths.  No, they aren’t as huge as the Marshmallow Man in director Ivan Reitman’s “Ghostbusters.”  Nevertheless, they can leap across vast spaces, scramble up the sides of skyscrapers like cockroaches, and raise a whole lot of Hell.  Unless lawmen like Roy Pulsipher (Bridges) and Nick Walker (Ryan Reynolds) expose these post-mortem madmen for the monsters that they are, the Earth will suffer.  According to their boss lady, Proctor (Mary-Louise Parker), the souls of the death continue to rot on Earth and create a stench that pollutes the environment.  Our heroes wield flashy, extra-large handguns with celestial white bullets like those in the “Underworld” movies.  Roy and Nick can shoot these ‘deados’ and permanently erase them.  Proctor recruited Roy and Nick after they died, and they fill the ranks of other legendary lawmen that prowl the Earth for these despicable ‘deados.’

Detective Sergeant Nick Walker is living ‘happily ever after’ with his pretty wife Julia (Stephanie Szostak of “Iron Man 3”) in Boston.  As the story unfolds, Julia awakens Nick and comments about an orange tree growing in their back yard.  What poor Julia doesn’t know is Nick and his shady partner Hayes (Kevin Bacon of “X-Men: First Class”) just made a drug bust and stumbled onto a cache of gold.  Rather than turning the precious ore over to the authorities, Hayes convinced Nick to split it with him.  Nick buries his gold in the hole that he carved out of his yard for the orange tree.  After Julia assures him that all she needs in life is his love, Nick has second thoughts and a guilty conscience.  He tells Hayes he must turn in his share of the gold.  Nevertheless, he assures Hayes that he would never inform on him if Hayes keeps his share.  Reluctantly, Hayes agrees that his dreams of buying a speedboat with his share were illusionary.  At that moment, the Boston Police receive a tip that the ‘most wanted’ meth dealer in town has been located.  Nick and Hayes barrel into the hide-out with the rest of Boston’s Finest either on their heels or swarming around them in helicopters.  During the melee, Hayes confronts Nick and shoots him repeatedly.  Nick plunges to his death.  No sooner has Nick died that his body is drawn aloft into a heavenly vortex.  All this action transpires efficiently during the first quarter hour of “R.I.P.D.” 

Proctor awaits Nick with a bottle of Fresca on her desk.  She explains that the Rest in Peace Department needs of men with his special skills.  She assigns him to Marshal Roy Pulsipher, but Pulsipher doesn’t want a new partner.  In some ways, Roy behaves like Dirty Harry.  He prefers to work solo, but Proctor persuades Roy to mentor Nick.  Although our heroes are deceased, they aren’t flesh-eating zombies.  They exist in another dimension, but they can tread the Earth the same way as humans and their ‘deado’ adversaries.  The first thing that Roy does for Nick is escort him to his own funeral.  Furiously, Nick watches helplessly as the treacherous Hayes consoles Julia.  Initially, Nick agrees to serve on the R.I.P.D. Boston chapter so he could be near his wife.  The catch is neither Roy nor Nick look like they did when they were alive.  Instead, they have been assigned avatars.  Roy’s avatar is drop-dead-gorgeous Opal Pavlenko (Victoria’s Secrets’ model Marisa Millar), while Nick’s avatar is an elderly Chinese man named Jerry Chen (James Hong of “Chinatown”).  “R.I.P.D.” switches back and forth between our protagonists and their avatars, but it doesn’t wear the joke out.  Eventually, Nick gets another avatar and the closing moments of the movie will have you laughing out loud at his new avatar.

Jeff Bridges delivers an outlandish Yosemite Sam performance reminiscent of his Oscar-nominated performance as Marshal Rooster Cogburn in the “True Grit” remake.  Kevin Bacon makes a hopelessly obnoxious villain. He wants to build a mysterious tower of gold. The best thing about “R.I.P.D.” is that it’s derivative but different.  Hollywood abhors originality.  You won’t see another comic blockbuster like “R.I.P.D.” this summer, and this will be sufficient for most moviegoers.

FILM REVIEW OF ''THE LONE RANGER'' (2013)

 “The Lone Ranger” (*** OUT OF ****) is an entertaining but outlandish western spoof aboutthe origins of the protagonist told from the perspective of his faithful Indian companion Tonto.  Since westerns are neither popular nor fashionable, Walt Disney Pictures and producer Jerry Bruckheimer must have felt that the only way to treat the subject matter without alienating audiences was to emphasize comedy.  Just about everybody I know has referred to it as “Pirates of the Caribbean” on the western frontier.  The comparison seems apt, too.  Director Gore Verbinski helmed the first three “Pirates” epics.  Johnny Depp starred in them, too.  Interestingly, Depp’s Tonto emerges as a far more tragic but sympathetic figure than Captain Jack Sparrow.  Some of the larger-than-life shenanigans, particularly the agile display of horsemanship atop a fast-moving train, can be attributed to co-scenarists Ted Elliot and Terry Rossio.  Not only did they write “The Mask of Zorro,” but they also penned “The Legend of Zorro.”  Antonio Banderas galloped his black stallion atop a trundling train, too.  Elliot and Rossio also wrote “Alladin,” “Small Soldiers,” and the first three “Pirates” movies.  A third scenarist, Justin Haythe of “Snitch” and “Revolutionary Road,” contributed to this sprawling saga.  Mind you, Armie Hammer’s Lone Ranger is nothing like Clayton Moore’s Masked Man.  Moore debuted as the eponymous character in the ABC-TV series “The Lone Ranger” back in 1949.  He wore the mask longer than any other actor.  Clayton Moore registered so deeply in the American psyche as the Masked Man that his clash with the copyright holders in 1981 about wearing the mask yielded enough bad publicity to sink “The Legend of the Lone Ranger.”  Apart from the WB Network, the Lone Ranger hasn’t fired any silver slugs since 2003.  Verbinski and his scribes poke fun at the most important convention of The Lone Ranger: the mask.  None of the previous Rangers worried about the mask. Armie Hammer’s Lone Ranger feels self-conscious about the mask and doesn’t understand its significance.  Everybody who encounters the Lone Ranger asks him about the mask.  

“The Lone Ranger” opens in San Francisco in 1933.  A little boy in a cowboy outfit, hat, vest, mask, and matching cap pistols pays for a ticket to see a Wild West Show.  He stares at a number of exhibits, such as the buffalo, and then he meets a replica of a Noble Savage.  At this point, in the tradition of the “Night at the Museum,” the Indian surprises him and speaks.  A wizened Tonto (Johnny Depp of “Blow”) wears a black bird atop his head and looks like he should be at the Happy Hunting Ground.  He recognizes his old partner, the Lone Ranger, and blows the little guy’s mind so much that the kid whips out a cap pistol and blasts away.  Afterward, Tonto settles down to chronicle the legend of the Lone Ranger.  John Reid (Armie Hammer of “The Social Network”) has acquired a law degree and is returning home to Colby, Texas, to serve as the county prosecutor.  At the same time, treacherous railroad executive Lathan Cole (Tom Wilkerson of “The Green Hornet”) has pulled strings so he can hang one of the most notorious outlaws, Butch Cavendish (William Fichtner of “Heat”), wherever he wants as a warning to other desperadoes.  Awaiting the train at the station is John’s older brother Dan (James Badge Dale of “World War Z”).  John and Dan’s father served with the Texas Rangers.  Dan and his wife Rebecca (Ruth Wilson) watch in horror as the train derails. A huge lever designed to spin the wheels of the locomotive tumbles end-over-end from the sky and narrowly misses our heroes.  When we meet the chief villain, Butch Cavendish, this murderer is chained to the floor of a freight car.  Tonto sits nearby and watches as the outlaw finds a six-gun stashed under a plank.  Cavendish behaves like an unsavory villain.  He shoots both of sentries without a qualm.  Impetuous John Reid manages to get the drop on him.  Nevertheless, Cavendish escapes, and our heroes barely get off the train in time to save themselves.  Dan forms a posse and tosses John his father’s Texas Rangers badge.  Basically, John behaves like every western tinhorn that you’ve ever seen on the big-screen.  Dan’s trustworthy scout Collins (Leon Rippy of “Stargate”) betrays the Rangers and leads them into an ambush.  Everybody gets shot to ribbons.  The depraved Cavendish turns out to be a cannibal, but he isn’t shown chowing down. Meantime, John is shot twice, passes out, and appears dead for all practical purposes.  Tonto finds him later and tries to bury him.  At one point, a mysterious white stallion materializes and scrapes its hoof across John Reid’s Ranger badge.  Afterward, Cavendish kidnaps Dan’s widow Rebecca and her son Danny.  Eventually, Cavendish orders Collins to finish them off.  

“The Lone Ranger” occurs against the scenic backdrop of American history during the construction of the transcontinental railroad.  The infamous Cavendish and Cole are playing for high stakes.  They have struck it rich with silver mine and excavated over $30 million worth of ore.  Rather than remain content as a minor railway executive, Cole mounts a hostile takeover of the railway company while orchestrating the annihilation of the Comanche Indian nation.  John Reid bumbles along for the first 90 minutes trying to convince himself he can be a man of action.  Verbinski pulls out all stops late in this 149 minute melodrama when he stages a chase between two trains.  This incredible railway sequence is reminiscent of the unforgettable stunts that silent movie star Buster Keaton pulled off in “The General.”  Finally, near the end of the movie, John Reid understands why he must never remove the mask.  He also realizes why he can never have a relationship with Rebecca. As corrupt as society is, the only way to combat this corruption is to be an outlaw.  Altogether, despite its titanic length, “The Lone Ranger” has no shortage of death-defying exploits or spectacular desert scenery.  

FILM REVIEW OF ''MAN OF STEEL" (2013)

The new Superman movie, “Man of Steel” (**** OUT OF ****), ranks as the best about the Last Son of Krypton.  After the lackluster box office response to the flawed but entertaining “Superman Returns” back in 2006, Warner Brothers and D.C. Comics must have retreated into their own collective Fortress of Solitude to contemplate the future of the Man of Tomorrow.  Clearly, since he received story credit, writer & producer Christopher Nolan played a part in shaping this Superman reboot.  As the genius behind the hugely profitable Christian Bale “Dark Knight” trilogy, Nolan qualified as the ideal choice to guide the thinking behind the reboot.  If you’ve seen Nolan’s “Batman” movies, you’ll spot his influence on “Man of Steel.”  First, like Nolan’s “Batman” epics, “Man of Steel” deplores comic relief and holds humor to a minimum.  Comparatively, “Man of Steel” is nothing like glib “Iron Man 3.”  Second, Clark Kent ventures out into the world incognito like Christian Bale’s Bruce Wayne did in the early scenes of “Batman Begins.”  Clark holds down several jobs before he dons his distinctive apparel and then plays everything straight.  “Smallville” fans will appreciate this rite of passage, especially where the trucker is concerned at the truck stop. “Watchman” director Zack Snyder and “Blade” scenarist David S. Goyer rely on Nolan-like flashbacks to break up the monotony of conventional chronology.  Clocking in at 143 minutes, “Man of Steel” maintains a sense of spontaneity that tweaks its formulaic plot.  Third, this Superman movie boasts no more connection with the previous Superman outings than Nolan’s “Batman” movies had with the Batman adventures that toplined Michael Keaton, Val Kilmer, and George Clooney.  Fourth, just as Nolan changed the way that the Caped Crusader appeared, Superman doesn’t dress up in his traditional attire.  The biggest change in Superman’s costume is that he doesn’t wear drawers outside his outfit, and he flies around in the equivalent of dyed blue thermal underwear.  Nevertheless, Superman hangs onto his cape.  All these alterations make “Man of Steel” a better movie than if would have turned out had Warner Brothers stuck with the “Superman Returns” storyline. 

Genre movies, such as westerns, crime thrillers, and horror chillers, rely on surefire narrative formulas, and “Superman” movies are no different.  Not only do good genre movies strive to top each other, but they also redefine themselves so they can appeal to different generations.  Superman appeared first in 1938 in Action Comics.  Since his debut, the Man of Tomorrow has evolved.  Other media outlets adapted him and came up with new ideas for the character.  The radio show introduced kryptonite as the substance that endangered Superman.  “Man of Steel” takes a traditional but at the same time a revisionist approach to its subject matter.  Like “Superman” (1978), “Man of Steel” opens with Superman’s origins as the son of Jor-El on the dying planet of Krypton.  Unlike “Superman” (1978), “Man of Steel” expands the action on Krypton.  At the same time, the Jor-El character does get slighted as he has in virtually all Superman movies.  Russell Crowe portrays Superman father Jor-El in a performance of commendable restraint.  Cleverly, the filmmakers have devised an imaginative way to extend Jor-El’s presence beyond the opening battle on Krypton with the treacherous Krypton military commander General Zod (Michael Shannon of “Mud”) who hates him with a passion.  The Krypton battle scenes amount to a mini-epic with homages to both “Star Wars” and “John Carter.”  “Man of Steel” provides three times more spectacle here before it plunges into the “Smallville” years.  

Teenage Clark struggles to conceal his identity with his father Jonathan Kent (Kevin Costner of “Wyatt Earp”) and his mother Martha Kent (Diane Lane of “Hollywoodland”) backing him up.  The scene where he prevents the school bus from sinking into a river after it topples from a bridge is invigorating stuff.  The death of Jonathan Kent—he doesn’t croak from a heart attack like he did in “Superman” (1948), the “Superman on Earth” episode of the 1952 “Superman” television series, or “Superman” (1978)—differs, and Snyder and Goyer tie it into Clark’s ability to discipline himself.  Daily Planet reporter Lois Lane becomes interested in the sensational exploits of a nomadic troubleshooter after he saves her life while she is in the Arctic writing about a mysterious spaceship trapped in the ice.  Eventually, she tracks him down to Smallville and entreats him to let her let his story, but he refuses.  He wants nobody to know about him.  Lois’ editor Perry White (Laurence Fishburne of “The Matrix”) refuses to publish her story about a stranger from another world.  Ironically, while no human can convince Clark Kent to divulge his identify as Superman, General Zod forces him to take credit for his heroic deeds and surrender himself to the authorities of Earth.  “Man of Steel” synthesizes the first two Christopher Reeve movies by imprisoning General Zod in a Phantom Zone and then releasing him to serve as the primary villain.  Basically, “Man of Steel” boils down to “E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial” versus his own elders.  Zod and his minions show up out of the blue and insist that Earth give up Kal-El.  At this point, we Earthlings don’t know who to trust.  When it comes down to clash, both Zod and Kal-L constitute targets that we fire on without a qualm.

British actor Henry Cavill is the sixth actor cast as an adult Superman.  You’ve probably seen Cavill in “Immortals,” “Tristan + Isolde,” and “Cold Light of Day.”  Ironically, he auditioned for the Clark Kent role in “Superman Returns.”  Cavill looks every inch like Superman, with his muscular physique ripped and chiseled like a Michelangelo statue.  Happily, he doesn’t impersonate Christopher Reeve.  If he comes closest to imitating any Superman actor, he delivers a performance reminiscent of George Reeves.  Cavill has his head in the right place, and his Superman takes himself seriously.  Of course, if you’re yearning for something more like “Superman” (1978) or “Superman Returns” (2006), you’re going to be disenchanted.

FILM REVIDW OF ''STAR TREK INTO DARKNESS" (2013)

Movies have always reflected the concerns of society.  Like "Iron Man 3," "Star Trek Into Darkness" (**** OUT OF ****) follows a cold-blooded terrorist through the galaxy who conjures up chaos in this science fiction "Zero Dark Thirty" manhunt.  Mind you, the filmmakers have refrained from identifying any specific ethnic or religious group in this 23rd century tale.  "Super 8" director J.J. Abrams' dynamic sequel reassembles virtually the entire cast as well as some minor characters from his 2009 "Star Trek" reboot.  Remember those cadets who gave Kirk a bloody nose in Iowa?  They're back, too. Similarly, Chris Pine returns as Captain James T. Kirk, along with Zachary Quinto as the pointy-eared Mr. Spock, Zoe Saldana as Lieutenant Nyota Uhura, Karl Urban as Dr. Leonard "Bones" McCoy, and Simon Pegg as Lieutenant Commander Montgomery "Scotty" Scott.  Unlike the original Roddenberry film franchise with William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, and DeForest Kelly, nobody in Abrams' "Star Trek" gets cheated out of screen time, particularly peripheral characters like John Cho's Lieutenant Hikaru Sulu and Anton Yelchin's Ensign Pavel Chekov.  The performances are uniformly top-notch, with Pine relishing Kirk's action hero impetuosity and Quinto delivering his lines about truth and logic with a straight-faced, impersonality that makes you smile at his subtlety. Incidentally, Mr. Spock learns how to tell a lie without flinching in this outing.  Urban gets most of the laughs with his observations about McCoy's shortcomings. Unfortunately, the traditional "Trek" villains- those diabolical Klingons—are confined to just one scene while the senior Spock (Leonard Nimoy) appears briefly during a televised conversation between his younger counterpart and himself.  Trekkers who hated the 2009 “Star Trek” will probably abhor “Star Trek Into Darkness,” while more open-minded Trekker will embrace the changes.

Every film franchise requires a treacherous villain.  Happily, "Star Trek Into Darkness" has forged a ferocious foe.  Enigmatic Starfleet Commander John Harrison (Benedict Cumberbatch of the BBC's "Sherlock") with his glacial stare and warmly uttered words is so thoroughly malignant that you'd probably pummel the gifted British actor who portrays him.  Basically, Harrison possesses several advantages over his adversaries that cannot be revealed without spoiling this suspenseful saga.  Meanwhile, Harrison has a bomb detonated in downt0wn London during the year 2259.55 that galvanizes Starfleet into swift action.  Specifically, Harrison blackmailed an officer assigned to Section 31 of a Starfleet archive to blow it up inside and then takes credit for the catastrophe.  Gimlet-eyed Starfleet Admiral Alexander Marcus (Peter Weller of "RoboCop") laments the deaths of 42 people in the explosion.  As the calculating Harrison, Cumberbatch delivers such a hypnotic performance that he makes you forget anybody else is in the scene.  He is the Magneto of the “Star Trek” movies.  Nonetheless, Weller provides stiff competition despite his considerably shorter screen time.  Weller emerges as the equivalent of a hawkish, Strategic Air Command general from the 1964, Stanley Kubrick epic "Doctor Strangelove" (1964) who wants to shoot first and forget any questions. Indeed, Admiral Marcus considers the Klingon Empire every bit as wicked as most SAC generals considered the Communist Empire.  Marcus wants Harrison dispatched with extreme prejudice, and Kirk wants to personally execute those orders after Harrison launches an audacious attack on the war room with a helicopter-style gunship.  This massacre reminded me of a similar scene in the Al Pacino epic "The Godfather 3." Afterwards, Harrison goes gallivanting off into forbidden Klingon territory where Starfleet lacks jurisdiction.  Kirk resumes command of the Enterprise after violating a prime directive and pursues Harrison with an array of 72, new, photon torpedoes. Neither Mr. Spock nor Scotty approve of the idea of killing Harrison without the due process of a trial.

Despite its ominous title, this splendid Paramount Pictures release doesn't hide in the shadows of its stellar predecessor.  Actually, Abrams and "Transformers" scenarists Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman, abetted by "Lost" co-creator Damon Lindelof have taken the franchise farther than the first.  You get to see more of San Francisco and the futuristic contraptions that people travel around in.  Watching "Star Trek Into Darkness" is like—to borrow the cliché—riding a runaway roller-coaster on a figure-eight trestle with flames chasing you.  Abrams and company give them a little bit of everything to do except travel in time.  One scene has our hero and villain decked out like Buck Rodgers plunging through space This review covers the 2-D, not the 3-D version..  Prepare yourself for surprises galore as the filmmakers, clearly all fans of Gene Roddenberry's ground-breaking science fiction TV series, show you things that you might never have imagined or perhaps tolerated in earlier incarnations.  The special effects look impressive, especially the space debris between the USS Enterprise and the USS Vengeance during a taut stand-off scene.  Not only does the narrative take place on the Enterprise bridge but also on Earth in San Francisco as well as on a Class M Planet called Nimbus.  Technically, although it is sequel, "Star Trek Into Darkness" is still a sequel to a prequel, making it a prequel, too.  You'll understand the significance of this during the final moments when the crew of the USS Enterprise embark on their upcoming five-year mission.  If you're a hardcore "Star Trek" who can handle the liberties that Abrams and company have wrought, you'll probably want to see "Star Trek Into Darkness" more than once.  I grew up watching the original NBC-TV series when it first aired on Thursday nights.  After the show’s cancellation, I followed the Enterprise crew onto the silver screen and have thoroughly enjoyed the adventurous Abrams' prequels.  The casting is as close to perfect as you can imagine.  For the record, I've seen "Star Trek Into Darkness" three times, and I'm eagerly awaiting its release on home video.  This review covers the 2-D, not the 3-D version.