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THE EQUALIZER 2: 3 STARS
Like a perfectly cooked egg, or by blowing up the individual air pockets on a bubble wrap or the sound "pawooof" a bottle of champagne properly opened Watching Denzel Washington open a box of whoop bad on the wrong people is extraordinarily satisfying. His latest film, "The Equalizer 2", the first sequel to his long and rich career, offers a myriad of Fisticuffian delights that should satisfy Denzel fans.
Denzel returns as a former secret agent-Robert McCall writers. Although he seeks to reduce his ongoing quest to protect and serve the exploited and oppressed, when his former boss and close friend Susan Plummer (Melissa Leo) is murdered, he goes in search of revenge. "You killed my friend," he said to the bad guys, "so I'm going to kill everyone of you, my only disappointment is that I can only do it once." Cue the carnage, Denzel style.
There's more, as a secondary plot with a young artist McCall is trying to get away from the gang life and some double crosses, but you're not going to an "Equalizer" movie for social messaging or the plot. You will see Denzel rule over people who deserve a punch or two. That's why the first half, largely without intrigue, is more satisfying than the second. We see McCall in random situations doing what he does best, not getting bogged down by the whims of narrative style or thematic statements. The fighting scenes do not vary much, he climbs the room, mumbles a line killer and devastates those who get in his way. It's in the second half, after Susan's murder, that she collapses as the film infiltrates the procedural territory. McCall's investigative work leads to another unlikely climax of the "Equalizer" type, although this one, located in a seaside town during a hurricane, is not as ridiculous as the Home Hardware shootout – who knew these places were so dangerous? film, but it still requires a suspension of disbelief. (Start by asking yourself, when did he have time to suspend all those Susan photos in a storm?)
Director Antoine Fuqua sped up the pace of the first film, showcased the action, and added two motivators, betrayal and grief. Washington brings gravitas and ferocity to a character stuck somewhere between the atonement of his violent life by helping those around him and making snot fall of people who are on his bad side. This sequel confuses the character by presenting him as a man in his own right, indulging in his own outlaw righteousness. You can root it, but do not put yourself on its wrong side.
Not as trashy as "Death Wish" or as action packed as "John Wick", two more copies of the man on a crusade genre, "The Equalizer 2" is a Solidly entertaining popcorn movie with pretensions to bring the Shakespearean levekl of pathos to the tale of revenge. Instead, he is "caught" with the special set of skills and without the boring girl character.
EIGHTH GRADE: 4 ½ STARS
Have you ever wondered what age should be like at one time? information overload, motivating YouTube videos and school-shooter exercises? With "Eighth Grade", a funny and keen take on college life, director Bo Burnham gives you a spike, from creator / star of MTV's "Zach Stone Is Gonna Be Famous" to the current John Hughes .
Elsie Fisher is Kayla, a teenager recently hit by the last week of eighth grade. "The hardest thing about being oneself is that it's not easy," said the thirteen-year-old girl in one of the many inspiring YouTube videos that she's ############################################################### She publishes on the Web to search for friends, validate and especially appreciate. The problem is, she is not JennaMarbles. Although she's stuck to her phone and she's invented a perky slogan – "Gucci!" – it has no presence on social networks. "The subject of today 's video is to get in there," she says, "but where is it?"
This is not much better in IRL. Ignored by her clbadmates, she is only invited to the pool party of popular girl Kennedy (Catherine Oliviere) because her mother (Missy Yager) has a crush on Kayla's father, Mark (Josh Hamilton). Speaking of his father who has been suffering for a long time, he spends his time trying to meet only monosyllabic grunts while he tries desperately to distract her from his ever present phone.
Finally, "Eighth Grade" is all about Kayla's attempts to feel connected and find her place in a world where screens separate people. "I'm nervous, like I'm queuing for a roller coaster," she says. "I never feel like I'm after the roller coaster."
"Eighth Grade" is an unblemished, pimples and all, look at adolescence and the anxiety that accompanies it. Kayla may not always be able to articulate exactly what she feels but the movie is no problem. It's a study in his innocence and clumsiness that uses carefully chosen moments to highlight Kayla's state of mind.
A pool party scene, where she has to wear a swimsuit in front of cool school kids, displays her insecurities, a sweet reaction to being asked to hang at the mall by an older friend is genuine and sincere. Later, a game of Truth Or Dare contains as much suspense as any sequence of action we have seen this year.
These scenes, combined with the discomfort that Elsie Fisher brings to Kayla's daily life, and the very dramatic music highlights the ups and downs of her life and you have a slice of life portrait that stands feel completely authentic.
Do not worry, it will not shoot on foot: 4 stars
"Don" t worry about not going far on foot "does not talk as much about l & # 39; ; story of John Callahan, the quadriplegic based in Portland who became a famous cartoonist, controversial after a car accident as s & # 39; is his personal journey [19659003Lefilmcommenceàlafincommençantaprèsl'accidentetserapprochantdel'histoiredeCallahanlemalheurladécouvertedesoietlarédemptionNotrepremieraperçudeJoaquinPhoenixentantquedessinateurvientàunendroitfixedanssavieDelàleréalisateurGusVanSantsedéplacelelongdelachronologiedelaviedeCallahanNouslevoyonssurlacintreusequiacausél&Accidentofaccidentthattheself-righteouschairwasrunning
meetings of Alcoholics Anonymous chaired by sponsor Donnie (Jonah Hill) and at home with his badistant (Tony Greenhand) .This is a fragmented approach that focuses on the themes of Callahan's life rather than on events. His journey is metaphysical, from the unfortunate idle sluggard to one who embraces the community. Van Sant and Phoenix explore the psyche of the artist, detailing how to be put into adoption at birth fueled his alcoholism and unresolved abandonment feelings. Phoenix, limited in its movement for much of the film, delivers a rich performance, both volatile and vulnerable.
He is helped by a talented cast led by Hill. He is hard-loving personified, a tell-it-like is A.A. sponsor who calls his piglets fee. Meetings at home are those including the interesting Kim Gordon cast of Sonic Youth as a Valium addict with a propensity to get naked in public, Udo Kier and the unbridled presence of musician Beth Ditto steals every scene in which he finds himself. find. Jack Black, in a small role but pivot, manages to highlight both its gonzo and sensitive sides.
John Callahan is best known for his grisly drawings but the film of his life is anything but. "Do not worry, he will not be far off" is a windy, life affirming a look at a man whose misfortune was his salvation.
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