Elvis

ELVIS

2022 | Dir. Baz Luhrmann | 159 Minutes

"You know, my boy, the truth about the Rock of Eternity, is that it is forever just beyond our reach."

By chance, shady carnival promoter Colonel Tom Parker encounters young Elvis Presley and immediately sees potential for profit in his unique talent. Seizing the chance to take advantage of Presley as his manager, Parker exploits Presley for decades, struggling to control Presley's indomitable spirit and sex appeal while stifling his creative impulses and desire to reach a wider global audience.

With Elvis, famously flamboyant writer/director Baz Luhrmann tells the life story of one of the biggest pop culture icons of all time. Like most biographical pictures, the feature breezes through the major events of the subject's life, leaning into triumphs, dialing up the drama on tragedies, and selectively glossing over large stretches of time. What sets Elvis apart is that Luhrman's signature over-the-top style is evident in every frame of the picture, making it a thoroughly engaging sensory experience. Unfortunately, the film as a whole is immediately and irreparably derailed by framing Presley's parasitic manager Colonel Parker as central figure of the narrative. It's a bold decision, speaking volumes about how recording artists, even one of the biggest stars ever, can be abused by those closest to them. However, it's a choice that truly undermines the incredible work of lead actor Austin Butler as Presley, while calling attention to an unbelievably awful performance from Tom Hanks as Parker.

Elvis works best when it is focused on Presley and the music he was raised on and promoted all his life. The best moments of the picture explore his inspirations rooted in black music, how he was able to bring that sound to audiences that would otherwise dismiss it, as well as his controversial status as a prominent sex symbol. This is perfectly exemplified in the sequence depicting Presley's first performance in front of a full auditorium, intercutting moments from his childhood enthralled by gospel music at a black church, as the young women in the crowd go wild for the handsome singer's gyrating hips. 

Austin Butler is phenomenal as the King of Rock and Roll, delivering a revelatory performance that believably embodies the larger-than-life legend while movingly conveying what makes the "King" human after all. Conversely, Tom Hanks as Colonel Parker is distractingly terrible, putting on a ridiculous accent and giving such a big, stagey performance that it makes the entire film markedly worse. Olivia DeJonge is impressive as Priscilla Presley though her presence is overshadowed by Butler and Hanks in starkly different ways.

Less a biopic centered on the legendary Elvis Presley and more a bizarre character study of his grossly unethical and opportunistic manager, Baz Luhrmann's Elvis takes one major disappointing creative swing, exacerbated by a questionable performance from Tom Hanks, that significantly makes the film worse. However, the feature is definitely worth seeing for Austin Butler's excellent portrayal of the icon. While it is a deeply flawed picture, it is at least never boring.

FRAGMENTS

- Certain moments of this film might as well have been lifted wholesale from 2007's Walk Hard, anyone making a musical biopic should watch that all-encompassing parody as an example of everything they should avoid doing

- As the film paints a mostly flattering portrait of the King, and also a testament to Austin Butler's performance, the Presley family very publicly endorses this picture

- I seriously love how the film touches upon Elvis's love of Captain Marvel Jr.

- I, for one, am very much looking forward to seeing Austin Butler as the sadistic Feyd-Rautha Harkonnen in Dune: Part Two

The Banshees of Inisherin

THE BANSHEES OF INISHERIN

2022 | Dir. Martin McDonagh | 114 Minutes

"I just don't have a place for dullness in me life anymore."

On the island of Inisherin off the coast of Ireland, kindly and simple Pádraic is confused when his best friend Colm decides to permanently severe ties. Despite his sister's sensible advice to accept the end of relationship, Pádraic continually pesters Colm until the schism between the former friends corrodes into an ever-expanding abyss.

The Banshees of Inisherin presents an entertainingly tragic story about a relationship abruptly ending and the gradual escalation of hostility that follows, sadness and frustration that when left to fester reaches irrationally preposterous and destructive proportions. Setting the narrative against the backdrop of the Irish Civil War, writer/director Martin McDonagh aptly weaves an engaging interpersonal tale with wide-reaching implications regarding the fragile nature of fellowship, how ambition and pride can lead individuals to commit increasingly regretful acts of aggression, how petty circumstances can corrode ostensibly good people until they become spiteful monsters. Courtesy of McDonagh's exceptional screenplay, the relatively low-stakes conflict is made up of emotionally complex components with subtly quirky characters, sharp amusing dialogue, and situations that take surprisingly severe turns. The feature is essentially a comedy examining the questionable causes of human conflict, and McDonagh ultimately encourages viewers to question their grudges and other unnecessary burdens and, if possible, leave them behind for good.

Cinematographer Ben Davis captures the alternately beautiful and severe landscape of the island with a deft hand. Deeply dreary but captivating, the visual aesthetic of the film perfectly complements the feelings of excruciating loneliness and refusal to compromise that run through the narrative. The picture leaves an indelible impression that its island setting may be a nice place to visit but most definitely not a good place to settle.

Colin Farrell is captivating as dull but well-meaning Pádraic, slowly transformed by loneliness into an increasingly petty and pitiful fool. Brendan Gleeson is thoroughly convincing as prideful aspiring composer Colm, fixated on his mortality to the point of mild insanity. The picture also features Kerry Condon hilariously distraught as Pádraic's sister Siobhán, perhaps the only reasonable person in town; and Barry Keoghan stealing his scenes as the local idiot Dominic.

The Banshees of Inisherin is an exceptionally well-written, delightfully dark comedy. Observing an abandoned friendship that gradually declines into an increasingly bitter grudge, the picture's seemingly simple plot escalates in shocking and unpredictable ways. Elevated by brilliant performances from its immensely talented cast, the picture tactfully articulates specific darker aspects of the human experience that are typically difficult to convey.

FRAGMENTS

- The film premiered at the 79th Venice International Film Festival where it received a 15-minute standing ovation

- Brendan Gleeson is in actuality a skilled fiddle player and he does his own fiddle playing for this film

MCU CONNECTIONS

- Kerry Condon (FRIDAY in Avengers: Age of Ultron, Captain America: Civil War, Avengers: Infinity War, and Avengers: Endgame)

- Barry Keoghan (Druig in Eternals)

Avatar: The Way of Water

AVATAR: THE WAY OF WATER

2022 | Dir. James Cameron | 192 Minutes

"Water connects all things: life to death, darkness to light."

Over a decade after leading the extraterrestrial natives of Pandora to drive away invaders from Earth, and permanently transferring his consciousness to a new body to live among them, former human marine turned resistance leader Jake Sully is locked in a desperate struggle with a new generation of hostile aggressors. When forces headed by a vengeful enemy from the past threaten to wipe out his clan, Jake and his family take refuge among a well-respected tribe of free divers and must learn to adapt to their new environment.

Thirteen years after the release of Avatar, writer/director James Cameron returns to the exotic science fiction world of the Na'vi and opportunistic spacefaring Earthlings. The narrative of the film is fairly standard, at its core an extended tale centered on a family struggling to find its place in a strange and beautiful alien world and survive against hostile forces. The plot is intended to be as simple and inoffensive to general audiences as possible, so accessible that watching the preceding film in order to follow along with this new story is hardly a pre-requisite, competently structured though rather unremarkable. What makes Avatar: The Way of Water unique is how Cameron utilizes somewhat pedestrian big budget blockbuster storytelling to promote the importance of environmental preservation and to experiment with cutting edge visual effects technology.

The greatest strength of The Way of Water is its spectacular technical presentation. The picture is a fully immersive visual experience that pushes the capabilities of CGI and the theatrical cinematic experience forward. In its intended 3D high frame rate format, the feature's numerous thrilling action sequences come to exhilarating life, and the gorgeous underwater scenes are simply breathtaking. Further perfecting the animation techniques developed for the first Avatar, the Na'vi characters and the human actors convincingly inhabit the same spaces, never calling to attention the digital trickery involved to make these elaborate visual effects shots work. Particularly impressive and absolutely surreal, legendary film star Sigourney Weaver is de-aged and completely transformed into young Na'vi teenager in a prominent supporting role. The extensive work and artistry on display in creature design, mechanical design, overall production design, and the development of the technology to compose and render the stunning visuals make The Way of Water a mind-boggling, truly staggering accomplishment.

Returning to the role of Jake Sully, Sam Worthington turns in a relatable, surprisingly empathetic performance as a warrior who must learn to be a father. Impressive as always playing science fiction characters, Zoe Saldaña naturally reprises the part of Neytiri, absolutely believable as a mother willing to do anything to protect her family. Sigourney Weaver, though incredibly uncanny to initially behold as a blue Na'vi child, is excellent as Jake and Neytiri's feisty idealistic adopted daughter Kiri. Stephen Lang brings a bit more nuance to the Na'vi recombinant iteration of the series' central antagonist Quaritch. As the Sully children, Britain Dalton is serviceable but less than memorable playing secondary protagonist Lo'ak, while Jamie Flatters and Trinity Jo-Li Bliss are also just fine as older brother Neteyam and baby sister Tuk. Playing the human boy Spider who befriends the Sully family, Jack Champion treads the line between endearing and irritating, though the role successfully provides Lang's Quaritch with a fair amount of needed dramatic weight. The supporting cast also features Kate Winslet and Cliff Curtis as the leaders of the free diving Metkayina tribe; Bailey Bass and Filip Geljo as Metkayina siblings Reya and Aonung, Lo'ak's love interest and antagonistic rival respectively; Edie Falco as an uncompromising human general; Brendan Cowell as a despicable whaling captain; and Jemaine Clement as a conscientious marine biologist.

Through and through, Avatar: The Way of Water is a monumental technical achievement in visual effects. While the story offers nothing particularly groundbreaking, its focus on the bonds of family is universally appealing as are the film's bountiful fantastic sequences reminding the audience James Cameron is still a master of staging compelling action. Even those who were not fans of Cameron's first excursion to Pandora may find much to enjoy about this grander, more ambitious follow-up over a decade in the making.

FRAGMENTS

- The production timeline for these Avatar sequels is, in a word, dramatic: release dates were delayed, the number of sequels inflated, significantly more time was spent on post-production than principal photography for this one (though this was partially due to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic)

- Perhaps due to the extensive amount of high frame rate footage, many 3D projectors failed during the opening weekend of the film including the one at my screening!

- I am decidedly not a fan of 2009's Avatar, likely never will be, and I did not have the highest expectations for this sequel, but it is by far one of the best theatrical experiences I've ever had despite the projector issues; a testament to the quality of the movie: most of the audience in attendance at my sold out screening stayed through all of the glitches and system restarts, committed to finish the entire 3-hour+ film in full

MCU CONNECTIONS

- Zoe Saldaña (Gamora in Guardians of the Galaxy, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, Avengers: Infinity War, Avengers: Endgame, and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3)

All Quiet on the Western Front

ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT
2022 | Dir. Edward Berger | 147 Minutes

"All of this is like a fever. No one actually wants it, but suddenly it's here. We didn't want it, the others didn't want it. And yet, here we are. And yet, half the world is here. And God watches on as we slaughter each other."

During the First World War, teenager Paul Bäumer and his classmates cheerfully join the Imperial German Army but their dreams of heroism are quickly broken by the harsh realities of warfare in the brutal trenches of Northern France. As Paul watches his comrades fall in battle one by one and experiences other atrocities, his hope and humanity irreparably deteriorate. Meanwhile, German and French officials spend days negotiating a ceasefire long overdue.

An adaptation of Erich Maria Remarque's 1928 novel of the same name, Edward Berger's All Quiet on the Western Front illustrates in gut-wrenching detail the myriad of horrors soldiers faced during the First World War. Though the story has been brought to the screen on several previous occasions, most notably Lewis Milestone's 1930 Academy Award winning picture, Berger's take is a worthy reworking of the source material, depicting the intense, merciless nature of war in the age of industrial warfare without pulling any punches. Most provocatively, the film also sharply juxtaposes the carnage on the battlefield against scenes of passionless methodical negotiation between diplomats to end the bloodshed. It is an intense examination of how misguided nationalistic pride and false promises for superficial glory can lure young men into fighting battles they don't fully understand for their cold and uncaring leaders.

The feature's production design and cinematography work hand-in-hand to create a nightmarish aesthetic that is drained of color and convincingly filthy. The terrifyingly visceral combat sequences would not seem out of place in a horror movie, re-enacting the many, many awful ways to die in trench warfare. The battle on the French front line complete with tanks and flamethrowers is particularly gnarly. Volker Bertelmann's musical score is spare but striking, most notable during the transitions between the scenes featuring the soldiers and the scenes featuring the diplomats.

Felix Kammerer capably carries the bulk of the film as Paul, embodying the idealistic young man turned hardened soldier. As Paul's loyal comrade-in-arms Kat, Albrecht Schuch is fantastic, equal parts charismatic and tragic. In the role of German official Matthias Erzberger, the sole voice of reason, Daniel Brühl delivers a controlled and sympathetic performance.

The 2022 version of All Quiet on the Western Front is an appropriately bleak vision of futile and senseless warfare. Disturbingly, graphically violent and emotionally distressing with purpose, this anti-war picture is not for the weak of stomach or the faint of heart. Though the story takes place over a century ago, its powerful central message will remain relevant as long as young soldiers continue to needlessly go to war on the whims of vain and spiteful military commanders and heads of state.

FRAGMENTS
- It's frankly very surprising that this is the first German-language screen adaptation of All Quiet on the Western Front, nearly a century after the publication of the novel

- Though the subplot featuring the negotiations for armistice is newly written for this film, the way it is depicted with a distressing lack of urgency certainly strengthens the anti-war themes of the story


MCU CONNECTIONS
- Daniel Brühl (Helmut Zemo in Captain America: Civil War)

The 95th Academy Awards

My ranking of the Best Picture Oscar contenders of 2023:

1. Everything Everywhere All at Once *

2. The Banshees of Inisherin

3. Women Talking

4. The Fabelmans

5. All Quiet on the Western Front

6. Top Gun: Maverick

7. Avatar: The Way of Water

8. Tár

9. Triangle of Sadness

10. Elvis

* Actual Winner