Operation Finale (2018) * *

Directed by:  Chris Weitz

Starring:  Oscar Isaac, Ben Kingsley, Nick Kroll, Melanie Laurent, Joe Alwyn, Haley Lu Richardson

It is baffling how the story of the capture and bringing to justice of one of the most notorious of all Nazis, Adolph Eichmann, has so little juice.    There is only sporadic suspense, with very good Isaac and Kingsley performances which can only elevate things so much.    You would expect Operation Finale to crackle with suspense, but it moves too slowly to generate anything more than occasional glimpses of what it could've been.

Adolph Eichmann (Kingsley) was considered the "architect of the final solution" and fled Germany following World War II to escape justice.    He takes up residence in Argentina, which is seemingly sympathetic to Nazi war criminals on the run.   Eichmann lives a quiet, unassuming life with his family under a false name as a machinist, but his identity is revealed to the Israeli government through his son's girlfriend.    She dates Eichmann's fanatical son Will (Alwyn), who is more than eager to lead the next generation of Nazis.    One of his first dates with his girl is to a dinner party which soon morphs into an anti-Semitic rally.    Memo to Will:  Don't take a girl you barely know to a Nazi sympathizers' rally.

The tricky extraction of Eichmann from Argentina circa 1961 is led by Mossad agent Peter Malkin (Isaac).   Snatching Eichmann when he disembarks the bus near his remote home outside Buenos Aires is relatively simple.    Keeping Eichmann holed up in a safe house due to travel complications is more difficult, as is somehow convincing Eichmann to sign a paper in which he submits to a trial in Israel for his crimes.    There is an argument over simply forging Eichmann's signature to the document, but the reasons Mossad can't are unconvincing.    This plot point is pushed aside so we can have a showdown between Peter and Eichmann, which is supposed to be the high dramatic point of the movie.  

It's tough to nail down Eichmann.    At times, he is the cruel Nazi bureaucrat who delighted in the deaths of millions of Jews.    Other times, he is a loving man concerned about his family's safety.   Other times, he seems sympathetic to Peter and the loss of his sister and her children to the Holocaust machine.    Other times, he insists he knew nothing about the atrocities personally and was just following orders.    Kingsley is naturally game at playing Eichmann in all of these ways, but we never gain any sense of Eichmann.    We don't feel we get to know him and what drove him, which is maddening.    Peter is much more level-headed and opens up slowly to Eichmann, not because Eichmann can play mind games, but because he feels it is the best way to compel Eichmann to essentially sign his own death warrant.

The one-on-one showdowns between Peter and Eichmann, like the rest of Operation Finale, never rise above being well-acted but lacking power.    As the Israelis attempt to flee the country with Eichmann in tow, there is a delay at the airport which tries to manufacture suspense but fails.    I kept thinking how Argo (2012) encountered the same issues and was able to do this type of sequence a whole lot better.    The capture and trial of Eichmann was world news.   Millions watched Eichmann's trial on television, and perhaps Operation Finale might've been better served by focusing its attentions on the trial itself instead of the laborious undertaking to get to that point.    We would not have experienced Isaac vs. Kingsley in the safe house, but I can live with that. 

The Happytime Murders (2018) * 1/2

Directed by:  Brian Henson

Starring:  Melissa McCarthy, Elizabeth Banks, Maya Rudolph, Joel McHale, Leslie David Baker, Bill Barretta (voice), Dorien Davies (voice)

Going in, I figured The Happytime Murders would be spectacularly bad or perhaps a hidden comic gem.    What is odd is that it's neither.    It's essentially a one-joke movie.    Once the novelty of puppets swearing, engaging in sex acts, and allowing their bodily (bodily?) fluids to fly everywhere subsides (and it subsides quickly), then you're left with not much else.

Maybe The Happytime Murders could've worked better if it weren't so interested in showing us puppets doing things we wouldn't normally see puppets do.    Seeing an octopus jerking off a sheep isn't funny, it's unsettling.    The Happytime Murders hopes to gets its laughs off of shock value instead of mining a scene for its humor.    Bad taste can be funny, but it's a high wire act which needs to be executed just right.    It isn't easy, but it can be done.

The Happytime Murders takes place in Los Angeles, in a bizarre world in which humans co-exist with puppets.    Puppets get the short of the end of this stick.   We meet private detective puppet Phil Phillips (voice of Bill Barretta) who used to a cop until a deadly incident in which he accidentally shot a civilian while trying to save his human partner Connie Edwards (McCarthy).    According to Phil, it happened twenty years ago, but then a few minutes later, he said it happened twelve years ago.    It's a noticeable gaffe in screenplay continuity. 

Phil and Connie are teamed up to investigate the murders of members of a 1990's TV show cast titled The Happytime Gang, which consisted of mostly friendly, spirited puppets.    These days, the puppets have fallen on hard times.    One frequents adult book stores, one is strung out on sugar (the drug of choice of puppets), one runs a crime ring, etc..    Phil used to be involved with the one human from the Happytime cast (Banks) and his brother Jimmy also used to star, although Jimmy has traded in his blue color for white and got a nose job.   

One by one, the puppets die in gruesome ways, and at one point Phil himself is a suspect.    He and Connie have a bad history, but they reconcile after swearing at each other a lot and getting deeper into the investigation.    The human actors are game, while Barretta lends a nice world-weary touch to his voicing of Phil.    But, then we see two puppets having sex on a desk and the male puppet ejaculates all over his office and we sink further into despair.     The Happytime Murders was directed by the late Muppets' creator Jim Henson's son Brian, but the movie never succeeds beyond the concept stage, which on paper might've sounded hilarious: "Hey guys, let's have puppets do wild things!  The script practically writes itself!", but in the execution, it's all wrong.

Damien: Omen II (1978) * *

Directed by:  Don Taylor, Mike Hodges

Starring:  William Holden, Lee Grant, Jonathan Scott-Taylor, Robert Foxworth, Nicholas Pryor, Meshach Taylor, Alan Arbus, Sylvia Sidney, Lew Ayres, Elizabeth Shepherd, Lucas Donat, Lance Henriksen

The Omen (1976) was a creepy thriller about a six-year-old Antichrist, but it was plausible because a.) the child was only six and b.) trying to convince someone his adopted son is the Antichrist is rough sledding.    But, Gregory Peck's Robert Thorn was finally convinced and nearly pulled off stabbing his son to death with ancient daggers designed for such an occasion.    Damien: Omen II, released two years after The Omen, picks up Damien's story as he turns thirteen.    He has a flat, menacing British accent which suggests the evil lurking within him.    Damien (Scott-Taylor) does not know who he is, but he learns soon enough, and after about ten seconds of thought accepts his destiny. 

Damien: Omen II might've been more successful if didn't try to copy the original's story, with the only difference being Damien's age.    The adults (those who aren't already working on Satan's behalf) are slow studies.    Accident after accident befalls anyone who falls within this kid's line of sight, and his rich Uncle Richard (Holden) and Aunt Ann (Grant) (who are now his guardians) don't seem to notice the common denominator.    The first film stretched this idea as far as it could go.  This one only continues the trend.    As in The Omen, the poor people destined to die do so according to their names on the poster.    The stars die last and the supporting players go in order of screen time.

The only wrinkle thrown in is the evolution of Richard's Thorn Industries into a global power with malicious intentions now that it is run by Satan's disciple Paul Buher (Foxworth), who is Richard's trusted lieutenant, but unbeknownst to Richard is a Satanist assigned to protect Damien.    A lot of things seem unbeknownst to Richard and his wife, even as friends and eventually their own biological son fall prey to spooky accidents.    You would think it wouldn't take them as long as it does to figure things out, especially with Richard's own brother dying in the first one under strange circumstances. 

Damien: Omen II even tries to recycle Jerry Goldsmith's "Ave Satani" for this film.   The entire sequel feels recycled and rehashed, trying to squeeze a few more bucks out of an idea which lost steam already.    What was sinister and effective is simply a retread now.    And Ann deserves what she gets.   Sorry. 

The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagment (2004) * *

Directed by:  Garry Marshall

Starring:  Anne Hathaway, Julie Andrews, Hector Elizondo, Chris Pine, John Rhys-Davies, Heather Matarazzo, Callum Blue

I saw The Princess Diaries (2001) and it was a slight, predictable movie.    It performed well enough at the box office to produce this slight, ultra-predictable sequel which would only surprise someone who has never seen a romantic comedy before.    It isn't awful, it's just there.    Anne Hathaway is a beauty and an immense talent who would later win an Oscar for her performance in a movie musical, Les Miserables.    Julie Andrews in 1964 did the same thing with Mary Poppins.    Now, they are together again for this sequel.    As much as I enjoy them as actors, I wish they picked something else to star in and really shine.

To recap the first film, Mia (Hathaway) is a shy, awkward, but mostly normal San Francisco teenager who learns she is the heir to the throne of Genovia, which is in Europe somewhere.    Her very mannered grandmother Clarisse (Andrews) is the queen of Genovia and the mother of Mia's late father.    Mia's mother never told Mia her father was a prince.    After hemming and hawing, Mia accepts the title of princess and wins a boyfriend in the process.    In Part 2, Mia lives in Genovia and apparently the boyfriend from the first film is dumped.     She is decreed to have to marry within thirty days or relinquish the rights to the throne to Sir Nicholas (Pine), who is next in line after Mia and is awfully young to be a Sir.  

Nicholas and Mia get off on the wrong foot at a ball and spend the rest of the movie bickering with each other.    Mia secures a handsome fiancée in Andrew Jacoby (Blue), who is nice, but dull, and Mia has more chemistry with Nicholas anyway despite Nicholas' uncle's scheming to usurp the throne.   As is tradition with such romantic subplots, Nicholas and Mia soon realize they are in love, and Mia must dump Andrew, but then complications arise at the eleventh hour which may disrupt the whole affair.    Will Nicholas and Mia overcome these issues to marry?    If this question causes any amount of thought, then please watch a few teen romantic comedies before returning to this review.

I don't know where the fictional Genovia is supposed to be, but many of its citizens have American accents, with a few British or French accents thrown in for good measure.    The country itself seems to have a village for a capital and Mia, Clarisse, and company throw a parade through the village which looks like chintzy set decoration and is about two blocks wide.    There is even an orphan Mia befriends who looks straight out of a Dickens novel.     I could swear I saw the royal courtyard in previous movies like History of the World Part I.  

I have nothing against even the most predictable romantic comedies, as long as they at least try to bring fresh energy to the proceedings.    Princess Diaries 2 is by rote, and even its likable actors can't save it.  

Sharp Objects (2018) * *

Directed by:  Jean Marc Vallee

Starring:  Amy Adams, Patricia Clarkson, Chris Messina, Elizabeth Perkins, Eliza Scanlen, Matt Craven, Henry Czerny

I waited until I watched all eight episodes to review this HBO limited series, but my chief complaint was apparent at about episode three.   The series runs way too long.    It becomes a drag to listen to the endless conversations in which names and events are thrown around as if we know what they're talking about.    I grew weary of the constant flashbacks to the main character's haunted past which we won't be able to make sense of until it is tidied up at the end.     The show at least sticks to the formula of a whodunit and doesn't give us a killer we didn't see before (a la the first season of True Detective), but Sharp Objects has the same rhythms and gloomy atmosphere of True Detective, which means it moves as quickly as a slug on a sidewalk in January.

The setup is intriguing.   Reporter Camille Preaker (Adams) is assigned a double homicide story in her hometown of Wind Gap, Missouri.    Camille is an alcoholic whose stints in rehab didn't take.   She fills up water bottles full of straight vodka and one wonders how she is able to function.    Camille is not thrilled at the homecoming, since her strained relationship with her domineering mother Adora (Clarkson) is obvious from their first meeting.    Adora's name belies her personality.   She is cold to Camille while doting on her half-sister Amma (Scanlen), who seems to know how to play her mother like a fiddle.   

Camille's past haunts her wherever she goes.   She sees visions of her late sister, who died mysteriously, and other traumas which just won't go away.    Camille's exposure to her hometown and her family doesn't help her drinking any, and the case itself is brutal to report on.    Suspects' names are cast about and the town has its suspicions of who might have committed the heinous crimes.    Sheriff Vickery (Craven) brings in a big city detective named Richard Willis (Messina), who grows to despise Wind Gap as much as Camille does, but for different reasons.    Camille and Richard become tentative allies and inevitably lovers, mostly because they have their hatred of Wind Gap as a common bond.

Camille, we learn, has acted out in other ways to her childhood trauma.   The scars all over her body, some in the form of words, were caused by Camille cutting herself in order to cause physical pain.   The physical pain may stop her from feeling the psychological pain, but her scars make her wear turtlenecks and long dark pants even in mid-summer so no part of her body is revealed.    In one of the better scenes, Camille undresses in front of a teen who is the leading suspect and for the first time experiences pleasure from a worshipful lover.    But, even that ends badly. 

Sharp Objects sets up nicely in the first episode, before meandering into too many unnecessary subplots and conversations which drone on.    This is an eight-part one hour series which could've easily been told in four parts.    The flashbacks become repetitive, and we have to endure them since we can't make sense of them anyway.   The story is told in the same manner a party guest would tell one assuming incorrectly that we know who the participants are.    We nod politely, but we haven't a clue what they're saying.

The actors, especially Adams and Clarkson, give strong enough performances to make us care as much as possible about them.    We respond to Adams' vulnerability as much as Clarkson's cruelty in equal measure, but I wished the rest of the story was equal to their talents.

Papillon (2018) * * 1/2

Directed by:  Michael Noer

Starring:  Charlie Hunnam, Rami Malek, Michael Socha, Eve Hewson

Papillon held my interest until it overstayed its welcome.   The buildup wasn't worth the payoff.    I recall the original 1973 film starring Steve McQueen as Papillon and Dustin Hoffman as Louis Dega vaguely, so I have no point of reference there.    I admired the performances in Papillon and the prison is sufficiently subhuman and filthy.  We would like to see someone escape from it just to show up the villainous warden and his henchmen, but I don't know about waiting nearly two hours and fifteen minutes to see Papillon finally float to freedom on a raft.

Papillon is based on a true story, or a story believed to be 75% true when Henri "Papillon" Charriere published his 1969 memoir years after escaping from the vaunted French penal colony on French Guiana and then from Devil's Island.    Some of the torture scenes we've seen in other prison films, and it is widely believed some of Papillon's story was taken from other prisoners' experiences.    No matter because the movie frames this as Papillon's story, so why quibble with percentages of truth?  Most biopics play fast and loose with facts for dramatic effect.   Why would we expect anything less here?    Especially with someone whose exploits occurred over seventy years ago and who few people know anyway?

We meet Charriere (Hunnam) as a career criminal in Paris who is framed and convicted of murder.  He is sent away to French Guiana to serve a life sentence and he quickly befriends squirmy, notorious fraud and counterfeiter Louis Dega (Malek), who has money in his person (yes, I said in his person) and is a target of those he scammed in the past.  Papillon will provide protection and Dega promises to bankroll his eventual escape plan.   Dega seems to have money available whenever anyone needs it, so it begs the question of how much money this guy has stuffed in his orifices.   

Papillon beats up on guards and attempts escape, which gets him tossed into solitary confinement for a few years.   He survives that, and then plans his escape with help of Dega and two other inmates.  They finance a boat from the outside and escape into the open sea in a suspenseful sequence.   When aboard the boat, we are treated to the phoniest looking open water scenes in many a moon.   I think I saw the same sound stage in The Truman Show, in which the horizon was actually a wall.    But, this only turns out to be the first escape, and Papillon extends another thirty minutes or so.    I can't say I was thrilled to see Papillon arrested and tossed into solitary again, basically starting over at square one.

Hunnam is a strong lead and we sympathize with him.   Malek, with his glasses and bookworm intelligence, is a suitable sidekick.   Their friendship blossoms enough to be reasonably interesting.  The final escape scene and tearful goodbye between Papillon and Dega is effective, although I can only speculate as to why Dega doesn't go with Papillon.    But, the issue is the movie takes too long to get here, and in the end the movie outstripped my patience.    If we lopped some of the running time off, Papillon might have been a better movie.    Instead, we have good performances in a prison movie that ain't The Shawshank Redemption. 

 

The Karate Kid Part III (1989) * 1/2

Directed by:  John G. Avildsen

Starring:  Ralph Macchio, Noriyuki "Pat" Morita, Thomas Ian Griffith, Sean Kanan, Robyn Lively, Jonathan Avildsen, Christopher Paul Ford, Martin Kove

Not only is this third chapter in the Karate Kid series unnecessary, it is unintentionally hilarious.   It is astonishing that the same writer and director of the first two films, both of which were thoughtful and engaging, would even think this one was worthy of filming.    They filmed it alright, and it is telling that John G. Avildsen did not direct 1994's The Next Karate Kid (which starred future Oscar winner Hilary Swank).   I can't see why he didn't.   The Next Karate Kid is no worse than The Karate Kid Part III.

Part III takes place back in Southern California after a journey to Okinawa in the previous film.    Aside from a brief throwaway explanation of why Daniel's love interest from that movie isn't in this one, the events of the second film are forgotten.    In the months since Daniel's unexpected win at the All-Valley Karate Tournament, Cobra Kai teacher Kreese (Kove) is broke and about to close up shop when he receives financial aid from "old Army buddy" Terry Silver (Griffith), who is about twenty years younger than Kreese and wears a slicked back ponytail.    Terry is a piece of work.   He conducts business from his bathtub, including ordering dumping of toxic waste into the ocean and dictating a memo to his elderly secretary who sits next to the bubble bath.    This is a #MeToo moment waiting to happen.    Kreese and Terry supposedly fought in Vietnam together, but since Terry appears to be in his late twenties, he would've been about twelve when he joined the Army. 

Terry is a cruel guy.   He sends Kreese away to Tahiti for some R and R, and hatches a plan to destroy Daniel and Mr. Miyagi by hiring a goon named Mike (Kanan) to challenge Daniel for the All-Valley tournament title.    Terry also pretends to be Daniel's friend to drive a wedge between he and Miyagi.  Terry is so obviously a creep it is amazing he can execute his plot as long as he does.    Thomas Ian Griffith is a perfectly suitable actor and he relishes being the villain.    The rest of the movie doesn't have his energy.   It feels defeated and mozies along to the inevitable ending in which Daniel faces the goon in the finals of the All-Valley tournament.    Thanks to a contrived plot development, Daniel only has to fight the final match of the tournament, and based on how his opponent torments him throughout the movie and in the match, he should be thankful.    Kanan is so intense his eyes look like they will pop out of his skull.    That or he will have a stroke.    Chill out, dude.

The brief wedge between Daniel and Miyagi is not convincing and inevitably will mend itself long enough for Miyagi to thrash the bad guys in a three-on-one fight and for Daniel to be victorious in the tournament.    However, there is nothing that would suggest Mike couldn't just beat the hell out of Daniel in the parking lot or continue to torture him as long as he desires.    Daniel wins with a feckless hip toss and rib punch, but that is nothing compared to the sadistic beating he absorbed at Mike's hands and feet.    Forget the crane technique, Daniel might need a gun to keep Mike from pounding on him.

Daniel has a love interest in this film too, a college student who works in a shop across the street from Miyagi's new bonsai tree store.    For some inexplicable reason, she declares to Daniel she has a boyfriend and wants to remain just friends, so why the young woman is even in the film is a mystery, especially since it is clear Daniel would like to more than just friends.    Largely like the movie itself, her character is not needed. 

Dinner for Schmucks (2010) * * *

Directed by:  Jay Roach

Starring:  Steve Carell, Paul Rudd, Lucy Punch, Jemaine Clement, Stephanie Szostak, Bruce Greenwood, Zach Galifianakis, Ron Livingston

What makes Barry Speck (Carell) and thus Dinner for Schmucks endearing is his guilelessness and outward innocence.    He's a sensitive IRS agent (we don't speculate on how good he is at his job) whose goofy, plucky exterior gives way to a goofy, plucky interior.   What you see with him is what you get.    He thinks curating means sex and plays dead as a way to get people to stop attacking him, but he attaches himself to Tim Conrad (Rudd), a commodities broker looking to get ahead in his firm by befriending Barry and bringing him to the company's "dinner for schmucks".   The dinner for schmucks is meant to showcase the human oddities the company's management brings along so they can be ridiculed and laughed at.    Whomever brings the oddest of the bunch will get a promotion.    Tim is a nice guy in love with his girlfriend Julie (Szostak), but so desperate for upward mobility that he will serve up Barry at the dinner, although not without some compunction. 

We don't have to wait until the dinner to get some big laughs here, and that is a relief.    The best thing about Carell is that he isn't trying to act like such a fool, he is one and a likable one at that.    He creates unusual art pieces involving stuffed dead mice wearing tiny clothes and appearing in small sets.   It is his way of expressing his emotions, some of which are painful thanks to his wife recently leaving him for another man.    The man she leaves him for is fellow IRS agent Thurman (Galifianakis) who believes he can exercise mind control over Barry, mostly because Barry believes Thurman can control it.    No points for guessing Thurman will appear at the dinner and give Barry a run for his money in the goofball department.

In the days before the dinner, Barry innocently ruins Tim's love life through a case of mistaken identity and doing things he shouldn't do in the name of being there for his new buddy.    We can't feel too sorry for Tim, since he has underhanded plans for Barry, but we kind of feel bad for him anyway.    Maybe we are hoping Tim can see what a true friend he has in Barry before it's too late.  Barry means no harm, but causes it anyway, much to Tim's ever mounting consternation.    Rudd rivals Ben Stiller as a master of the slow burn, which is evident in his scenes with artist Kieran (Clement), who has eyes for Julie and has an uber-confident belief his hyper animal magnetism can lure in any woman.    In Kieran's eyes, his conquest of Julie is a matter of time. 

Carell and Rudd, co-stars in 2005's The 40-Year-Old Virgin, have fluent comic chemistry.   The supporting roles are filled by capable comic actors who can help keep things moving as a funny undercard to the main event.    The dinner itself is a bit of a disappointment, mostly because the buildup to it is funnier, but Dinner for Schmucks has Carell as its heart.    We see how Barry, who is happy being who he is, is less of a schmuck than Tim or his bosses.   

 

Mile 22 (2018) * *

Directed by:  Peter Berg

Starring:  Mark Wahlberg, John Malkovich, Ronda Rousey, Iko Uwais, Lauren Cohan

In Mile 22, Mark Wahlberg and company play an ultra-secret elite tactical squad which destroys America's enemies in the most conspicuous ways possible.    How secret do they expect to remain if they engage in protracted gun battles in broad daylight with tons of witnesses around?   The "Overwatch", led by Jimmy Silva (Wahlberg) on the ground and Mother (Malkovich) as the eye in the sky keeping tabs on things via satellites, drones, and radio, is brought in to handle dirty government business they don't want on the books.    So deep is their cover, they have to "resign" from their front CIA jobs in order to undertake these missions.    Considering the explosions, gunfire, blood, guts, broken limbs, and death which occur trying to infiltrate a Russian safe house or delivering a spy to safety, don't you think this is like the U.S. government using a shotgun to kill a mosquito?

But Overwatch exists and it performs operations which your average CIA ops could do with a lot less hassle.    Isn't it Overwatch's extreme fortune that the local police stays away long enough so they can shoot bad guys, blow things up, and then get away?    It's as if the cops are saying: "Do your thing guys, take your time, we'll mop up when you're done,"   Mile 22 opens with the gang staking out a Russian safe house in the middle of an idyllic American suburban neighborhood.    With drones flying overhead, other agents on the ground, and Jimmy and sniper partner Sam (Rousey) waiting as snipers in a ditch in the heavily wooded backyard, the operation appears to be successful at first, until an unaccounted for glitch happens causing deaths and the house to explode.    Overwatch is somehow able to spin the mess so the media reports it was a Russian on Russian attack.   My question is, did Jimmy and Sam have to dig the ditch for them to hide out in, or was it conveniently there for them already?   My second question is, why would the Russians pick a house to hide out in which doesn't even have a backyard fence?

The action then shifts to a Southeast Asia country, when Jimmy and company (working for the embassy there) encounter a spy who has been a reliable source for information on local terrorists developing a powder which could make Hiroshima look like a firecracker.    The spy has a disk (again with a disk) which will self-destruct in eight hours containing valuable information tracing the sources of this explosive, and the spy Li Noor (Uwais) proposes a deal:  Get me out of the country and I'll give you the code to prevent the disk's detonation.    The local government wants Noor delivered to them, and soon send in assassins to take out Noor, which is a bad idea for the assassins.

Mile 22 is ultra-violent and ultra-silly.   Director Berg stages the action sequences well enough, and Wahlberg is a cheerfully intense and profane protagonist, with Uwais providing some unexpected depth as "the package" who could be another member of Overwatch in an alternate universe.    But, Mile 22 only engages in spurts.    Those who love loud action will get what they paid for.    Mile 22 is disposable and not one which is remembered much when you leave the theater.    Which isn't good for a movie which leaves open the possibility of a sequel.    I wish they wrapped everything up neatly in this one. 

Eighth Grade (2018) * * *

Directed by:  Bo Burnham

Starring:  Elsie Fisher, Josh Hamilton, Emily Robinson, Luke Prael, Catherine Oliviere

With a documentary-like feel, Eighth Grade is an authentic, empathetic look at a 13-year-old girl about to graduate eighth grade and figuring out her footing in the dawning of her teen years.     Unlike when I was thirteen, Kayla (Fisher) has a phone to play with and look at when she is feeling uncomfortable or insecure about a situation.    She can drown out her father's questions about her day (which annoy her anyway) by simply plugging in ear buds.    But, her insecurities, fears, and trepidation about appearing at a friend's pool party are not unlike those suffered by teenagers since time immemorial.   

The technology may be different, but the feelings are those we can identify with.    Those who can safely say they didn't feel out of place or unsure of things at thirteen (or even any age) are either lying or simply chose to forget these uncomfortable emotions.    Eighth Grade opens with Kayla shooting a YouTube video for her channel which few people watch.    This does not dissuade her from discussing her views of the world to the camera for all to see.    She discusses being confident and life lessons as if she has mastered them already, but the Kayla we see in school is anything but confident.    With pimples popping up in her complexion, Kayla doesn't appear to have many friends and fewer prospects for any.    She longs to befriend the popular girl Kennedy (Oliviere) who barely acknowledges her and her male crush Aiden (Prael), who only shows interest in Kayla when she lies about having nude pictures she can text him.   

Kayla's father Mark (Hamilton) is loving and takes interest in her, although Kayla would like him to stay out of her business (not that she really has any).    She is at the age in which everything a parent does is considered embarrassing or intrusive.    Kayla is not at the stage in life in which she understands her father was once a teenager himself.     How could he possibly know how she feels?   (ha ha)   Their relationship is at the core of the movie and is handled with the complexity it deserves.

I have never seen any of the actors in Eighth Grade previously.    The performances are natural and unaffected.    We don't see histrionics or any singular scenes which showcase them as actors.    In keeping with the true-to-life feel of the movie, the actors seem more like real people being filmed for a documentary.    Because of this approach, Eighth Grade's dramatic arc only reaches so high.    It is a film which observes and is essentially without a plot.    Instead, it gives us a peek into what it feels like to be thirteen and allows us to understand Kayla.    I admit some sequences tend to languish without payoff, but once I understood the movie isn't about dramatic payoffs, then I was able to admire its sincerity and authenticity. 

The Cutting Edge (1992) * * *

Directed by:  Paul M. Glaser

Starring:  D.B. Sweeney, Moira Kelly, Terry O'Quinn, Roy Dotrice, Dwier Brown

There is nothing about The Cutting Edge which would surprise any viewer that has seen a movie before.    It doesn't accumulate points for originality, but it is a pleasant, engaging romantic/sports comedy.    The leads are appealing and give us just enough reason to care about their romantic and competitive plights.    As we know in a movie like this, both plights will be cleanly resolved by the end, which is just as it should be.

We first meet hockey player Doug Dorsey (Sweeney) and figure skater Kate Moseley (Kelly) during a disastrous 1988 Calgary Winter Olympics for both.    Doug's peripheral vision is damaged after a dirty hit, thus ending his promising hockey career, while Kate's program with her male partner ends with a botched move and no medals.    Three years later, Kate is in need of a partner because of her reputation for churlishly bulldozing through potential partners, while Doug is unable to even sniff a pro hockey tryout.    The mismatched pair wind up as partners and naturally they fight about everything.    She's prissy and snobbish, he is a macho hockey player who can skate, but finds figure skating to be a wholly different animal.

We know just as night follows day that the Kate and Doug will fight, then thaw towards each other, then call a truce, become friends and a skilled skating duo which can qualify for the next Olympics, and then future lovers who will get together once Kate dumps her rich snob boyfriend (Brown) and the two lovebirds can admit they love each other.     The soon-to-be dumped boyfriend isn't blind to Kate's feelings towards Doug.    He calls their constant bickering foreplay, and we know he isn't wrong.

The plot and characters are what they are.    They march on inexorably towards the outcome we find ourselves rooting for.     Sweeney and Kelly have instant chemistry, and that is more than half the battle in a movie like this.    We also have our share of Rocky-style training montages with heavily synthesized pop music blaring over the soundtrack.    Is it remotely possible that Kate and Doug don't get together and/or win the gold medal?    No.  

The Meg (2018) * * *

Directed by:  John Turteltaub

Starring:  Jason Statham, Rainn Wilson, Robert Taylor, Jessica McNamee, Li Bingbing, Cliff Curtis, Masi Oka, Winston Chao

No, this isn't another Jaws ripoff.   The creature in question is a megalodon, an ancient precursor to the modern day shark which was thought to be extinct for two million years.    But, the scientists in The Meg disturb a portion of the ocean which contains parts deeper than previously explored and find themselves battling a megalodon much to their shock.    Besides its huge size and deadly appetite, the creature was supposed to be, you know, extinct.    But, now the scientists who built a multi-billion dollar underwater lab are forced to battle the monstrous being which has its eye on destroying or eating everything in its path.

This is not the type of movie in which you ask how megalodons managed to survive for millions of years in the remotest part of the ocean, or why there only seems to be one left, or possibly two at the most.    The megalodon is convincingly shot to evoke a legitimate threat to everyone not already eaten by it.    This includes Jonas Taylor (Statham), who specializes in deep underwater rescues but has been long retired after a large creature (likely the meg) disrupted a submarine rescue ten years ago, causing Taylor to save only eleven lives instead of the entire crew.    He is reluctant to return, but when one of the people in danger is his ex-wife (McNamee), Jonas becomes a rescuer once again.   In a pleasant twist, the ex and Jonas do not fall in love again because Jonas finds another love interest.

Statham infuses some humor and a few extra dimensions to the role.    He isn't simply an instrument of violence who sneers a lot and physically imposes his will on everyone.    It's a kinder, gentler Jason Statham, although the meg may not be as willing to co-sign that observation.    The Meg isn't Jaws and it would be unfair to expect that quality.    But, it is a competent action film which gets the job done; creating some suspenseful moments and the understanding that the fish underneath the menacing dorsal fin which protrudes above the water is attached to a much, much larger monster.    Once that is understood, The Meg takes on a charm of its own despite the gallons of blood spilled and body parts floating around. 

They Live (1988) * 1/2

Directed by:  John Carpenter

Starring:  Roddy Piper, Keith David, Meg Foster

They Live is a title which suggests an amusing harkening back to the 1950's B-movie sci-fi flicks, but we get the opposite.    It is a plodding, sluggish action film without the spirit of the films it is paying homage to.    The premise is compelling, but the execution of it is all wrong.   We meet drifter John Nada (Piper) who wanders Los Angeles with a large backpack looking for work at local construction sites.    He then settles into a Hooverville-type of outdoor dwelling in which the homeless live in tents and are fed by the local church.    Because of some odd actions by the church's blind pastor and strange speeches of doom which break in during local TV telecasts, Nada discovers the church is the focal point of the resistance against aliens whose messages and likenesses can only be seen through special sunglasses.

When Nada puts the glasses on, he sees alien beings within otherwise normal looking people (although not everyone is an alien) and subliminal messages such as "Obey", "Stay Asleep", and "Money is your God", etc. which lie apparently underneath billboards, magazines, and TV broadcasts.    The world with the glasses on is gloomy black and white, while the world without them appears normal and unassuming.    The aliens plan to subdue humans into becoming compliant, apathetic slaves through subliminal conditioning and a signal from a TV station.    Once Nada sees what he sees, he leads the resistance against the aliens.

Nada enlists the help of fellow construction worker Frank Armitage (David), which is also the name of the screenwriter (who is actually John Carpenter himself), but only after the two engage in a lengthy fistfight which grinds the already slow starting movie to a halt.    Piper, the famed heel wrestler with the big mouth who wore a kilt to the ring, is more jacked physically than he ever was in the squared circle, and his acting style resorts to his ring persona.   ("You are a formaldehyde face, man") he tells a woman who is actually an alien.    Despite Piper's best efforts, the film has the feel of trying to escape quicksand.  

Carpenter's career has been a mixed bag of very good films (Halloween and Escape from New York) to duds like this one, The Thing, and Escape from LA.    His better films are more original works, while homages and remakes of the sci-fi films of his youth aren't as successful.    They Live and The Thing have palls cast over them and aren't permitted to sneak in any fun or goofiness.    It's as if Carpenter knows the words but not the music.  

The Zen Diaries of Garry Shandling (2018) * * *

Directed by:  Judd Apatow

Featuring:  Garry Shandling, Jim Carrey, Jay Leno, Judd Apatow, Linda Doucett, Jeffrey Tambor, Al Jean

The Zen Diaries of Garry Shandling is Judd Apatow's love letter to his late mentor.    To its credit, it doesn't pull punches about its subject.    To Apatow, not presenting the comedian warts and all would be a disservice and also less interesting.     Shandling, as a stand-up comic, actor, and late night talk show fill-in host, seemed to be holding back.    He managed to be funny and witty while being completely ill at-ease within his own skin.    Being happy was hard work for Shandling, as his written diaries which are highlighted in this two-part documentary tell us.    He had to talk himself into being happy and not to dwell on the negative.    If you need to consistently give yourself a written reminder to be happy and to let go, chances are you likely won't do either.   

Shandling is best known to older audiences as the star of the late 80's "It's Garry Shandling's Show" and the 90's HBO comedy "The Larry Sanders Show", and perhaps to younger audiences as the two-faced Senator Stern in the Marvel Universe movies Iron Man and Captain America: The Winter Soldier.    Roger Ebert wrote of Shandling in his review of the disastrous 2000 film "What Planet Are You From?": " His public persona is of a man unwilling to be in public. Words squeeze embarrassed from his lips as if he feels guilty to be talking."   It is a spot-on analysis and the sometimes overlong four-plus hour documentary confirms that.    Mike Nichols, who directed What Planet..., felt on the first day of shooting that Shandling was not the right actor for the lead role in a comedy, and Shandling spent the rest of the shoot knowing Nichols didn't want to be there.    This would only add to the self-doubt which plagued his life and also propelled him to try harder.

We learn of the event which would forever alter his life, which was the death of his ten-year-old brother and the sometimes unhealthy focus his mother placed on him in his brother's absence.    Shandling would joke about his mother's smothering attention, and we can tell the truth being spoken in jest.    This lack of closure would create a hole in Shandling no amount of success could fill.    It was as if a piece of him remained missing; a wound which never closed.    He never married and his only long-term relationship was with his Larry Sanders co-star Linda Doucett, whom he fired after the breakup which led to a sexual harassment settlement.    Doucett, despite all this, agreed to be interviewed and clearly still had a soft spot in her heart for Shandling.

Apatow has a clear love and appreciation for Shandling, and perhaps so much so that he allows scenes from various shows to run on too long.    The on-camera interviewees marvel at Shandling's work ethic and wit, while also lamenting his insecurities and his inability to let go of grudges, as was the case during his lawsuit against former agent Brad Grey.    The highlighted sections of his diaries seemed more like daily pep talks to snap him out of the sadness which at times threatened to overwhelm him.    Before his sudden 2016 death from a heart ailment, Shandling's diaries suggested he may have finally come to terms with his brother's death and for the first time perhaps ever was eagerly looking toward the future.    How long would this positivity have lasted?   We'll never know.  

Eddie and the Cruisers II: Eddie Lives! (1989) *

Directed by:  Jean Claude Lord

Starring:  Michael Pare, Marina Orsini, Matthew Laurance, Bernie Coulson, Anthony Sherwood, Kate Lynch

I thought I needed to suspend considerable disbelief watching the original Eddie and the Cruisers (1983), but the unnecessary sequel asks way too much of me.     Eddie lives now in Canada as a construction worker named Joe West. When he succumbs to the itch to perform again, he belts out flaccid 80's pop songs (sung by John Cafferty and the Beaver Brown Band again) with precisely Eddie's voice.    If Jim Morrison returned from the dead under an assumed identity and looked and sang just like Jim Morrison, wouldn't it arouse at least a little suspicion?

There are no Cruisers in Eddie and the Cruisers II, except for one who appears in a cameo and deals with the return of his long gone best friend with way too much aplomb.    The original film was silly, but Cafferty at least provided us with some catchy original tunes and decent 60's staples covers like Runaround Sue.   In Part II, Cafferty's songs are dated and unmemorable.   I have a hard time believing any agent or manager would listen to them and be compelled to sign Eddie's new band. 

As the sequel opens, the record executives at Eddie's old label unearth "lost Eddie Wilson tapes" which they suggest were recorded after Eddie's presumed 1963 death in a road accident.    The answer to when they were recorded lies in a laughable interview with Bo Diddley (playing himself).  Putting up with Eddie/Joe is no small task.   It requires as much patience from his bandmates as it does from us to watch him.   He bellows on about "the music" and then proceeds to belt out their lame numbers.    And why did Eddie devastate his loved ones and friends by faking his death?    He mutters something about artistic integrity being compromised as the Cruisers gained popularity.    His life would've been considerably less stressful if he simply retired and didn't subject himself to possible criminal charges.  As far as I know, faking your own death is against the law somehow.

Eddie Wilson remains a shallow bore as much as he did in the first film.    We learn nothing about what it was like for him to be in hiding for over twenty years.    How did he avoid detection with just a mustache as the extent of his alteration of his appearance?    I was reminded of Jerry Seinfeld's classic bit about Clark Kent and Superman.   ("Let's face it folks, glasses are an excellent disguise")  Maybe Kent was onto something.    But no matter, Wilson's revelation of the world's worst-kept secret to a packed concert hall house causes barely any tremors.    If John Lennon suddenly materialized, the crowd would likely be too shocked with disbelief to cheer on any more songs. 

Along Came Polly (2004) * * * 1/2

Directed by:  John Hamburg

Starring:  Ben Stiller, Jennifer Aniston, Debra Messing, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Alec Baldwin, Bryan Brown, Bob Dishy, Michele Lee, Hank Azaria, Jsu Garcia

For a guy whose livelihood depends on assessing risk, Reuben Pffefer (Stiller) bets on longshots in his personal life.   Reuben is an insurance risk analyst who knows eating from a bowl of nuts at your average bar increases risk of exposure to any number of bacteria, but then marries Lisa (Messing) who cheats on him with a scuba instructor on their honeymoon.  During his separation from Lisa, he begins a relationship with flighty Polly (Aniston), who goes through life without a plan or any semblance of direction.    

Along Came Polly receives most of its laughs from the absurd characters which populate Reuben's world, including his best friend Sandy Lyle (Hoffman), a washed-up child actor still living off his popularity from a teen movie he did back in the 80's, and Reuben's boss Stan Indursky (Baldwin), whose behavior could be construed as hilariously inappropriate in more ways than one.  Just listen to his speech to Reuben and Lisa at their wedding and you'll see what I mean.   And let's not forget daredevil CEO Leland Van Lew (Brown), who is looking to be insured by Reuben's firm while doing everything possible to up his risk factor, including sky diving off of the tallest building in LA and sailing during a hurricane.

Polly helps Reuben to stand outside of his self-protective bubble and take chances, even ones which he knows will likely cause him grief such as eating spicy food and those dastardly bar peanuts.    Which isn't to say he is 100% sure of Polly or Lisa.    In a scene reminiscent of a Friends episode starring Aniston, Reuben categorizes the pros and cons of both women to see who is a better fit statistically.    Maybe Lisa would be safer, if Reuben could get past the whole being cheated on during his honeymoon thing.

Reuben's relationship with Polly is not as funny as his co-stars, who bring their own hilarious A-games and provide some comic gems.    Stiller proves once again he is the master of the straight man slow burn, while Aniston is appropriately likable.    Along Came Polly manages to mix up just the right amount of  screwball romance while not overshadowing the supporting players.    You would be surprised what an entertaining mix it is.