Review: "80 for Brady"

Lily Tomlin, Jane Fonda, Sally Field, and Rita Moreno are four show business legends. For over half a century, they’ve each starred in every medium of entertainment, and have done it with excellence. As a group, they possess five Oscars, 12 Golden Globes, 11 Emmys, and two Tony Awards. And refreshingly, despite the longevity of their careers, there are no signs of them slowing down. Their newest project is a treat, as they starred in the sports comedy 80 for Brady (2023)—which includes Tom Brady—released on February 3rd, 2023. Here’s my review: 

Lou (Lily Tomlin), Trish (Jane Fonda), Betty (Sally Field), and Maura (Rita Moreno) have a yearly tradition of always watching the Super Bowl together. One day, Lou suggests that they all go to the Super Bowl and to meet Tom Brady. Though the others are skeptical at first, they agree to go and hilarity ensues on the trip, forging an even stronger bond for the group.

Everyone loves a friendship story, but this movie is special because it’s a friendship story about, shall we say “more experienced” people. It’s based on a real-life story on five women from Foxborough, Massachusetts, the home of the New England Patriots: Betty Pensavalle, Elaine St. Martin, Anita Riccio, Pat Marx, and Claire Boardman had the tradition of gathering to watch the Patriots play football—especially Tom Brady. The group was started by Pensavalle, and her grandson Max, who works in Hollywood, is the one who pitched the idea of the film.  

Similar to Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau’s Grumpy Old Men (1993) and its sequel Grumpier Old Men (1995), this movie gives us a peek into friendships as we age. It’s sort of this generation’s “Golden Girls.” With additions of Field and Moreno, it continues the sisterly/BFF’s chemistry Tomlin and Fonda originally formed on the movie 9 to 5 (1980) and continued in Netflix’s Grace and Frankie (2015-2022).

  In addition to Tomlin, Fonda, Field, Moreno, and Brady, the film features cameos by Rob Gronkowski, Danny Amendola, and Julian Edelman as well as Sara Gilbert, Bob Balaban, Billy Porter, Harry Hamlin and Patton Oswalt in supporting roles. The film was directed by Kyle Marvin, making his film directorial debut and was co-written by Sarah Haskins and Emily Halpern who previously co-wrote Booksmart (2019). The film’s Executive Producers consisted of Marvin, Jeffrey Stott, and Michael Angelo Covino and it’s Co-lead producers were Brady and Donna Gigliotti (who won the Best Picture Oscar for Producing Shakespeare in Love (1998)).

Just when you think it’s all about making you laugh, it tugs at the heartstrings. It’s very well-acted and very well-written, and in addition to being about the blessing if friendship, it inspires one to never let age get in the way of doing what you love, especially if it means having an adventure with your friends. 

All in all, “80 for Brady,” is an exceptional movie. No matter how old you are, it has a touching friendship story that everyone can appreciate. Especially, if you’re a fan of Hollywood, this movie will deepen your admiration for four of its biggest stars. 

   

Review: "Puss in Boots: The Last Wish"

On May 19th, 2004, Dreamworks Animation released Shrek 2 (2004), a sequel to the Oscar-winning Shrek (2001). Expanding the “Shrek-iverse,” the film featured a new character, Puss in Boots the cat, based on the Italian Fairy Tale of the same name, and voiced by Oscar-nominee Antonio Banderas. The fearless feline was beloved by audiences, and was featured in the next two “Shrek” sequels Shrek the Third (2007) and Shrek Forever After (2010). The year after “Shrek Forever After,” the character was given a spin-off movie of his own, Puss in Boots (2011), which scored a Best Animated Feature Oscar Nod just like the first two “Shrek” films. 11 years later, Dreamworks released a sequel, Puss in Boots: The Last Wish (2022). Here are my thoughts:

Puss in Boots discovers that he used up eight of his nine lives. He doctor recommends he retire, but despite being older, Puss doesn’t want to. Later, he’s reunited with Kitty Softpaws, his love interest from the first film, and they discover there is a magical star that can grant any wish. So, they decide to go on another adventure in search of that star. Little do they know that other fairy tale characters, i.e. Goldilocks and The Three Bears and Little Jack Horner, are also after it and with questionable intentions.

The “Shrek” films and the first “Puss in Boots,” all told stories that poked fun at fairy tale characters, but in a non-offensive way. “The Last Wish,” continues that tradition, though I personally found its sense of humor to be much more clever than the previous “Puss in Boots.” In addition to humor the main message of this movie is to never let age keep you from having life’s adventures and doing what you love.

Antonio Banderas and Oscar-Nominee Salma Hayek both return to voice Puss in Boots and Kitty Softpaws. The voice cast also features John Mulaney as Jack Horner. Oscar-Nominee Florence Pugh, Oscar-Winner Olivia Colman, Ray Winstone, and Samson Kayo, respectively voice Goldilocks and The Three Bears. The film was co-directed by Joel Crawford and Januel Mercado. Crawford previously directed Dreamworks’ The Croods: A New Age (2020) while Mercado makes his film directing debut, having previously directed the Nickelodeon series Harvey Breaks (2015-2017) and the direct-to-video short Dear Diary: World’s First Pranks (2021). The film was also co-written by Tommy Swerdlow who wrote Illumination’s The Grinch (2018), Tom Wheeler who wrote the first “Puss in Boots,” and Paul Fisher who wrote “The Croods: A New Age.”

The film also boasts a beautiful visual style, inspired by Sony Pictures Animation’s Spider-Man Into the Spider-Verse (2018). Production Designer, Nate Wragg, intentionally patterned “Last Wish,” after “Spider-Man,” to give it a Moore “storybook look,” and it really contributes to the viewer experience.

Overall, “Puss in Boots: The Last Wish,” is a fun and entertaining movie. It reaches out to older audience members with a strong message about aging well and it’s an improvement on the first film with a more engaging story, while maintaining the clever humor of the Shrek universe.        

       

Review: "Avatar: The Way of Water"

On December 18th, 2009, James Cameron’s blockbuster film Avatar was released to theaters. The film became the biggest movie in the world, grossing a total of $2.9 billion dollars at the box office and winning three Oscars: Best Cinematography, Best Visual Effects, and Best Art Direction. This week—13 years later—James Cameron released the long-awaited sequel to the film Avatar: The Way of Water (2022). Here’s my review:

Jake Sully has happily adjusted to life on Pandora with his Na’vi mate, Neytiri and their children. They have three biological children: Neteyam, Lo’ak, and Tuk and one adopted daughter, Kiri. Life is bliss, until suddenly Jake Sully’s enemy, Colonel Miles Quaritch comes back into the picture. He, too, has been reincarnated as a Recombinant, “an avatar who has a memory of being human,” and he is out to exact revenge on Jake and his family along with the same gang of Marines from the first film. Hence, Jake and his family must team up with the rest of the Na’vi to protect their home planet, and in doing so, they befriend a new tribe of Na’vi called they Metkayinas who live on Pandora's eastern seaboard.

Jake Sully has a line in this movie “Sullys stick together!” His family is everything to him, and while it may be complicated, he believes sticking together is the only way to win. Family is the main message of this movie, which is different from the first film because that was about how Jake started as a marine, but then decided to join the Na’vi in favor of protecting them over serving under the corrupt Colonel Quaritch (not to mention his and Neytiri’s love story).

The movie is 3 hours and 12 minutes long, totaling at 192 minutes, 30 minutes longer than the first film’s 162 minutes. While that may require a snack and/or bathroom break for some people it all becomes worth-it in the end! (It makes you wonder how long the the third, fourth, and fifth Avatars will be!)

  “The Way of Water,” reunites the superb cast of Sam Worthington as Jake Sully, Zoe Saldana as Neytiri and Stephen Lang as Colonel Miles Quaritch, along with original film cast members: Sigourney Weaver, CCH Pounder, and Giovanni Ribisi. The film also inducts Kate Winslet into the Pandora World as Ronal, the wife of Chief of the Matkayinas, marking Winslet’s first time under James Cameron’s direction since Titanic (1997). Once again James Cameron directs, co-writes, and co-produces with Jon Landau, and he is also is one of four credited editors for the film along with Stephen E. Rivkin, David Brenner, and John Refoua. The film’s Cinematography was done by Russell Carpenter who won the Best Cinematography for “Titanic,” though the first “Avatar’s,” Cinematography was done by Mauro Fiore. The film’s music was composed by Simon Franglen, and while James Horner composed the first “Avatar” score, Franglen received a Best Original Song Golden Globe Nomination for writing the song “I See You,” for the first “Avatar” along with Horner and Kuk Harrell. 

All in all, “The Way of Water,” is a beautiful film. One could say it doesn’t quite equal the awesomeness of the first film, but its beauty can entertain whether you were a fan of the first film or not. It underscores the visionary that is James Cameron and it is another one of 2022’s best films. “The Way of Water’s” predecessor didn’t win the Best Picture Oscar, but this one might!

Review: "Spirited"

The very first film version of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol was released in 1938, in which the leading role of Ebenezer Scrooge was portrayed by Reginald Owen. Since then, the beloved Christmas story has been readapted numerous times in movies and television: Oscar-Winner George C. Scott played Scrooge in the television movie A Christmas Carol released in 1984, Emmy Winner Guy Pearce played Scrooge in A Christmas Carol (2019) miniseries, and Oscar Nominee Bill Murray played a modernized version of Scrooge named Frank Cross in Scrooged (1988), a film that told a comedic, modernized version of the story. On November 11th, 2022, AppleTV+ released a Spirited, a musical-comedy film that makes fun of every version of A Christmas Carol throughout the last century—but has a lot of fun doing it. Here’s my review: 

In “Spirited,” the Ghost of Christmas Present (played by Will Ferrell) has been at his job for almost 200 years and is seriously considering retirement. But, he wants to help one last “unredeemable” soul before he does. That “unredeemable” soul is arrogant, greedy media consultant Clint Briggs (played by Ryan Reynolds). When “Present” and Clint first meet, they instantly become enemies, but a unique friendship develops, as they both help each other improve their own faults and even find true love in the process.

Like “Scrooged,” “Spirited,” sets the story of A Christmas Carol in modern times, but it also pokes fun at it. It shows that the world is really full of “Scrooges” at Christmas and that some people are hard to get through to. But on occasion they might be able to see the “errors of their ways.” 

The musical-comedy features songs written by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul. Pasek & Paul wrote the songs for the movie versions of La La Land (2016) and The Greatest Showman (2017), both which earned them Oscar Nominations for Best Original Song. (They won for the song “City of Stars,” from “La La Land.”) They also wrote the Broadway Musical Versions of A Christmas Story: The Musical (2013) and Dear Evan Hansen (2017), which won them the Tony for Best Original Score. Looking at that body of work, one could easily say that Pasek & Paul have become the new Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II, and “Spirited,” is no exception. Pasek & Paul also wrote songs for Columbia Pictures’ Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile (2022) released October 7th.

In addition to Ferrell and Reynolds, “Spirited’s” supporting cast includes Oscar-Winner Octavia Spencer is Kimberly, Briggs’s assistant who later becomes Present’s love interest and Tony Nominee Patrick Page as the Ghost of Jacob Marley. The film was directed by Sean Anders who directed Will Ferrell in Daddy’s Home (2015) and Daddy’s Home 2 (2017). Anders also co-wrote “Spirited” and both the “Daddy’s Home” films with John Morris, and even cast his sister, Andrea, as Carrie, Briggs’s sister in the movie. The role of the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come is shared by two actors: NBA player Loren G. Woods wears the costume while Tracy Morgan supplies the voice. The film also features two celebrity cameos by Jimmy Fallon and Oscar Winner Dame Judi Dench.

Overall, “Sprited,” is, very surprisingly quite an entertaining movie! If you’re looking for a new, more modernized Christmas movie to enjoy multiple amounts of times throughout December, this is perfect! Especially if you’re a Pasek & Paul fan, there’s no way you wouldn’t be entertained. This film will totally put you in Christmas Spirit!

 

 

     

Review: "A Christmas Story Christmas"

Jean Shepherd first published the books In God We Trust: All Others Pay Cash in 1966 and Wanda Hickey’s Night of Golden Memories And Other Disasters in 1971. Both books were the inspiration for the beloved holiday classic film A Christmas Story, released on November 18th, 1983. The film was a moderate success when released, but continues to grow in cult status today, having been readapted as a stage play in 2000 and a Broadway musical version in 2012. A direct-to-video sequel, A Christmas Story 2, was also released in 2012. Throughout the last 39 years, however, fans of the original have begged for a continuation of the story, featuring the original film’s cast members. Finally, after all this time, they received it on HBO Max. A Christmas Story Christmas was released on November 17th, 2022. Here’s my review:

Set 33 years after the original, in 1973 Chicago, Illinois, Ralph Parker is now a husband and dad struggling to build his career as a writer. When he suddenly receives the news that his father has passed away, he brings his family to his hometown of Hohman, Indiana where he is faced with two very difficult burdens: making his own children’s Christmas special and writing his father’s obituary. In doing so, he takes a hilarious trip down memory lane as he rekindles fond—and not so fond—memories of his past. 

This movie is an emotional tribute to the late-great Darren McGavin who passed away on February 25th, 2006. It’s very touching, but also very hilarious. McGavin had a career spanning 63 years, and had many beloved roles on Broadway, television, and film. While the role of Old Man Parker is one of his best-known, he received an Emmy Nomination for his guest role on the series Murphy Brown (1988-2018), starred in the original Broadway productions of My Three Angels in 1953 and The Rainmaker in 1954, and he appeared in Billy Madison (1995), which ignited the film career of Adam Sandler. Despite his absence, the film beautifully carries on his legacy.   

Although the film takes place in 1973, the story is relatable to modern standards. One certainly could feel that they relate to the sequel more than they relate to the original as the original took place in 1940. There’s wittier humor, and it’s remarkable to watch Ralphie Parker be a responsible, conscientious adult instead of continuing to be a kid obsessed with getting a Red Ryder BB gun for Christmas.

This film reunites the original “Christmas Story,” cast: Peter Billingsley as Ralphie Parker, Ian Petrella as Ralphie’s brother Randy, R.D. Robb and Scott Schwartz respectively as Ralphie’s best friends Schwartz and Flick, and Zack Ward as “Officer” Scut Farkus. Melinda Dillon, who played Mrs. Parker in the original, was offered to reprise her role in the sequel, but declined as she was content with her retirement. Julie Hagerty was cast in the role of Mrs. Parker, and she portrays the role beautifully. Billingsley also co-wrote with Clay Kaytis who directed the film. Vince Vaughn, Marc Toberoff, and Irwin Zwilling all co-produced with Billingsley.

Overall, “A Christmas Story Christmas,” is a great movie, period! It has an emotional effect similar to “Ghostbusters: Afterlife,” as that film paid tribute to former “Ghostbusters,” cast member Harold Ramis who passed away in 2014. Even if you weren’t a fan of the original “A Christmas Story,” I would highly recommend this film as you’ll appreciate its emotionally moving message. I unashamedly rank it as my new favorite Christmas movie!  

 

Review: "Black Panther: Wakanda Forever"

On August 28th, 2020, Chadwick Boseman passed away less than two months shy of his 44th birthday, as a result of colon cancer. His most beloved role was King T’Challa/Black Panther in a series of MCU (Marvel Cinematic Universe) movies (2016-2021). He was also known for portraying Baseball Superstar Jackie Robinson in 42 (2013) as well as his Oscar-Nominated performance in Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom (2020). After his tragic passing, Marvel continued Black Panther’s story with Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (2022). This is my review.

As the nation of Wakanda mourns the death of their king, his beloved sister, Shuri faces a great deal of pressure. She grieves her brother’s death, but is also on the verge of succeeding him as Wakanda’s new Queen. Meanwhile, Wakanda itself faces a new enemy in the underwater kingdom of Talokan, led by King Namor, who is determined to throw Wakanda underwater due to a misunderstanding regarding a vibranium detector invented by the CIA. Shuri therefore has to team up with Okoye, leader of the Dora Milaje (Wakanda’s female forces), as well as a new friend, Riri Williams/Ironheart to not only fight Namor and his kingdom, but prove him wrong, all the while relying on the consistent guidance of her mother, Queen Ramonda.

This sequel offers a new perspective on the kingdom of Wakanda. It is female-dominated, whereas the first Black Panther (2018) was not. It is very easy to root for Shuri and Okoye because we admire them for their bravery and tenacity, but we also feel compassion for them as they mourn King T’Challa’s death. As they struggle to move on with their lives, along with the help of their new friend, Ironheart, we are quickly rooting for them. It is likely that most fans will miss Boseman’s reappearance, but the film pays a tribute to him in its opening and closing scenes, which provides closure as well as a nice transition to the new story.

I was disappointed by the film’s lack of humor, as well as the fact that its tribute to Boseman was only in the opening and closing scenes instead of all throughout the movie. But despite that, it was still entertaining. There was exceptional acting, a decent story, and of course, stunning visual effects. 

“Wakanda Forever,” reunites the cast of Letitia Wright as Shuri, also known as the new “Black Panther,” Danai Gurira as Okoye, and Oscar-nominee Angela Bassett as Queen Ramonda. The film also brings back Martin Freeman as CIA Agent Everett K. Ross. While both Freeman and Boseman appeared in the first “Black Panther,” both made their first official MCU appearances in 2016’s Captain America: Civil War. Julia Louis-Dreyfuss also appears as CIA Director Valentina Allegra de Fontaine, Ross’s former wife, and though de Fontaine appeared in the mini-series The Falcon and the Winter Soldier (2021), as well as the post-credits scene of Black Widow (2021), “Wakanda Forever,” marks de Fontaine’s first feature-length appearance. The film was directed by Ryan Coogler who directed the first “Black Panther,” and was co-written by Coogler and Joe Robert Cole. It features a new score composed by Ludwig Goransson who won the Best Original Score Oscar for scoring the first “Black Panther,” and was produced by Kevin Feige who has produced every MCU film since Iron Man (2008).

Overall, “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever,” is a good movie. It might not be a personal favorite for any fan, but they will appreciate how the new main characters carry on Chadwick Boseman’s legacy, even though they know he can never be replaced. More than anything, this new film leaves fans echoing the cry of this new “world”: “WAKANDA FOREVER!”

Review: "Black Adam"

The DC Comics character Black Adam made his first appearance in the first edition of The Marvel Family Comic Book, published in December, 1945. Since then, he has made numerous animated appearances on television and in video games: The Kid Super Power Hour with Shazam (1981-1982), Justice League Unlimited (2004-2006), and Lego Batman 2: DC Superheroes (2012). He finally made his live-action debut in Black Adam (2022), released on October 21st, in a movie produced by and starring Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson. Here are my thoughts:

After an imprisonment in 2600 BC for trying to avenge his murdered son, Black Adam, initially known as “Teth Adam,” is suddenly awakened by an archaeologist named Adrianna Tomaz, (who has a son named Amon). Tomaz and son are wowed by Adam’s remarkable levels of strength and speed, but ultimately they learn a complicated truth about Adam and his desire to avenge his son. When they discover that there are other heroes out to get him, (Justice Society members Hawkman, Doctor Fate, Cyclone, and Atom Smasher), the film turns into an epic chase story and you don’t really know who you rooting for.

This is a very clever movie because first of all, it’s about a human anti-hero rather than a superhero. He’s very high-strung, slightly irascible, and can become violent within a nano-second. And yet we can’t help but feel for him given the death of his child. One ends up hoping that he’ll learn to do the right thing as difficult as it may be. It’s just more complex than what is normally seen in a superhero movie before.

I was also surprised by the movie’s very fun wit. It’s always a bonus for superhero movie to have clever humor written into it, and this one certainly did. Although it did have some spooky fight scenes within the last half hour, the plot never ceased to be entertaining. Up till this point I had only seen Dwayne Johnson’s roles in light-hearted comedies: Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle (2017), Jungle Cruise (2021) and Red Notice (2021). He played this serious role brilliantly, showing off his dry sense of humor.

The movie was co-produced Johnson, along with Jennifer Conroy, Beau Flynn, and Dany and Hiram Garcia (Johnson’s former wife and brother-in-law). The supporting cast includes Sarah Shahi as Adrianna Tomaz, Aldis Hodge as Hawkman, Pierce Brosnan as Dr. Fate, Quintessa Swindell as Cyclone, Noah Centineo as Atom Smasher, and Bodhi Sabongui as Amon Tomaz. The film was directed by Jaume Collet-Serra, who also directed Dwayne Johnson in “Jungle Cruise.” One of these film’s writers, Adam Sztykiel wrote 2018’s Rampage, which also starred Johnson. Cinematography was handled by Lawrence Sher, who received a Best Cinematography Oscar Nomination for Joker (2019). The film also featured a surprise cameo by Henry Winkler who portrays Atom Smasher’s uncle.

All in all, “Black Adam,” is a great movie! It’s definitely a different take on the typical superhero movie. The plot is somewhat complex, and some of the humor doesn’t flow quite as easily, but the “Black Adam” story makes perfect sense. And it will certainly make you appreciate Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson as an actor.