Putting Owen in these boots but no cowboy hat is the real crime

One Dress a Day Challenge

August: Fantasy & Sci-Fi

Warcraft: The Beginning / Ruth Negga as Queen Taria Wrynn

This beautiful grey velvet dress appears in the epilogue, at the king's funeral. Queen Taria was a new character created for the movie, meaning there was no animated version to draw upon and they could design her look from scratch. It's hard to see in the actual film, but she has the lion of Stormwind worked into the back of the gown!

Emma Roberts as Venus/ Vee Delmonico in “Nerve” icons.

SWISS ARMY MAN (2016)

★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆ ☆ (7/10)

Now You See Me 2 (2016)

I’m sure the cast of Now You See Me - well, everyone but Isla Fisher, who bowed out of this sequel (actually, she was too pregnant to film, but I'd like to think she saw the first movie and said "Nope!") - were excited when a follow-up was greenlit. Writer Ed Solomon? He must’ve been sweating bullets. Now You See Me 2 is so convoluted it hardly makes any sense.

18 months after framing Thaddeus Bradley (Morgan Freeman), ruining Arthur Tressler (Michael Caine) and escaping the FBI, “Danny” Atlas (Jesse Eisenberg), Merrit McKinney (Woody Harrelson) and Jack Wilder (Dave Franco) are fugitives waiting to see what Dylan Rhodes (Mark Ruffalo), their leader and connection to the mysterious organization known as “The Eye” will ask of them next. Joined by Lula May (Lizzy Caplan), they're asked to expose corrupt tech CEO Owen Case (Ben Lamb). When their mission goes wrong, the Four Horsemen are strongarmed into stealing a data chip by criminal mastermind Walter Mabry (Daniel Radcliffe).

Now You See Me is a film that crumbles upon a second-watch, or even a first if you have a keen eye. On the sponge-like foundation, we’re now attempting to build another film. Jack Wilder faked his death. He, and everyone else, ditched their world-renowned personas as magicians to partake in some vendetta they had no association with. Their lives are essentially over, so what's next? No wonder they're thrilled about joining “The Eye”, a niche secret society that recruits stage magicians to combat crime. I bet they've got a long lineup of applicants with those restrictions.

Anyway, the plot kicks off when the Horsemen meet Walter Mabry. He wants them to steal a microchip that’s the size, weight and consistency of a playing card. If there was anyone in the world that could manipulate an object that size while being frisked by guards, it’s them… and that’s exactly the problem.

As a picture featuring magicians, Now You See Me 2 has the same issues as the first: the tricks aren’t being performed live so there’s no wonder in them whatsoever. You know any screw-ups have been edited out or erased via computer. None of it is the least bit impressive. Like before, there’s no shocking reveal about sorcery and real-life incantations. The whole thing is nothing but a series of tricks - tricks people in this film should be able to see right through if the movie didn't constantly cheat.

If we look at Now You See Me 2 as a heist film, it also fails. Primarily because the “big score” is tossed in the middle of the movie and goes off so easily it’ll make you roll your eyes. This microchip they have to steal is passed from one person to the next over and over, and so effortlessly no human being alive, not with a million years of practicing could do it. The Horsemen? They hardly break a sweat. The key to any good heist film is that no single person is good at everything. The pickpocket can’t do the demolition. The demolition artist can’t drive the car the way the getaway driver can, etc. You might not be able to picture yourself as Danny Ocean, but you might recognize a bit of yourself in Frank Catton. You might not be Ethan Hunt… but you could imagine being chosen as Benji Dunn. Who are you in Now You See Me 2? You’re not even the bumbling FBI agent.

The film is edited in a way that makes actions nonsensical and character motivations just as puzzling. The Horsemen are insufferable so you don’t care whether they succeed or fail and all wind up with their heads on pikes. In theory, you might’ve gotten slightly attached to Lizzy Caplan - who is a great addition to the cast - but there’s so much going with the random storylines that eventually tie together (unsatisfyingly) that there’s no time to flesh out any of the characters. They’re just pieces moving in a Rube Goldberg machine that’s merely over-complicated instead of being over-complicated and entertaining/hilarious. Director Jon M. Chu cast Woody Harrelson in two roles and still leaves the audience feeling like he didn’t do anything in the entire movie.

Now You See Me 2 is a living contradiction. It lacks any innovation, which should make it predictable… but it leaves so much money on the table it'll bamboozle you more than once. It’s dull to watch but fascinating to talk about and dissect. With his association with the Harry Potter franchise, Daniel Radcliffe proves to be an inspired bit of casting but he’s awful because he isn’t the least bit intimidating. The movie makes no sense but goes to great lengths to assure us that none of what we saw was sponsored by sorcery and witch’s cauldrons. It’s a great heist film for people who are kind of dumb. (January 28, 2022)

The La La Land soundtrack and score is freakin beautiful!

Certain Women (2016, dir. Kelly Reichardt) - review by Rookie-Critic

Certain Women was certainly moving. It tells 3 barely connected stories of four different women who, keeping in true Reichardt tradition, are stuck. Although this time it can be viewed as more of a societal stagnation than an emotional or literal one. The sexism heaped upon our 4 leads by both male and female side characters is both overt and maddeningly unopposed, but also portrayed as almost a mundanity in the lives of our protagonists. Something that is an unalienable fact to be brushed off and moved past, a battle to be chosen to fight or not to fight with each new case. Something to be passively mentioned with a small hope of acknowledgement from someone, anyone else in the room. It's again an optimistically melancholic film, with each story having a subtly different outcome: one slightly happy, one slightly sad, and one truly neutral.

With every new film of Reichardt's I watch, I grow more and more impressed with her ability to use silence as a powerful storytelling and emotional tool. Characters have whole conversations, entire thematic and personal landscapes are painted just by two characters sharing a look, or not sharing a look, or starting to say something, then choosing not to. This is a movie that is incredibly sparse on dialogue, but there is never a second that you don't know how our four protagonists feel. Reichardt's characters feel so real that they could very well just be sitting next to you, watching these stories unfold and unraveling them right there with you. It is an anthology film, and by nature it falls victim to some segments being much better than others, but I think all three of these stories sell different aspects of the film's overall message to great effect, and the individual segments' lacking pieces don't have a detrimental effect to the film as a whole. If you can dig past the surface-level mundanity, this is an incredibly strong film about the everyday ins-and-outs of the female experience from a litany of angles, all just as valid as the others, and well worth the 1 hour and 45 minute runtime.

Score: 9/10

Currently available for streaming on PlutoTV and The Criterion Channel.

O.J.: MADE IN AMERICA Review - ****

Hearing about the death of O.J. Simpson, I decided to go ahead and publish a fuller review of the brilliant documentary that sums up his life, his career, and the social context in which his trial occurred, leaving little room in my mind that he was, indeed, guilty. This was what I wrote in a capsule review in February 2017: 467 minutes, and it scarcely drags. A story most of us know far too…

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I’m sorry but it’s absolutely hilarious and yet adorable how the series handles Broppy’s relationship. First we get them traveling together as rivals (which was a bit more one- sided on Branch’s part) before slowing learning how to work together and to change for the other. Also it’s heavily implied Branch has an underline crush on Poppy. Then we get True Colors, and everyone thinks “okay they’re in love now”.

Some people/audience members are on board, others not so much. BUT THEN it turns out that the “I love you” they say to each other was a PLATONIC love confession. Like “you’re my friend, and I value you.” Which is still sweet, but was unexpected. (Though it does explain why the writers decided to put another platonic love confession scene between Bridget and Poppy. Yeah, I get it now)

So they just go through the journey as bffs who have feelings for each other but won’t say anything. And again, they learn how to work and grow together as a team and make the necessary changes to benefit the other. And then FINALLY we get the romantic love confession.

But it doesn’t stop there, oh no. Now we get adventure #3, this time with them as a full on couple. And they are actually really cute. Actually the film doesn’t focus that much on their relationship but we see hints of how they are as a couple.

Poppy is still all over the place but she’s much less in her own head and far more open to listening and being a good girlfriend.

Branch on the other hand is still occasionally getting exasperated by her energy but this time also has an appreciation for it. Also he learns to open up to her a little more and she’s there to listen and accept him with open arms. (Bonus points to their flirty dynamic because wow. They were adorable here.)

And it’s ONLY THEN (7 years after the first film) when they get their first on screen kiss.

Anyway. In conclusion: Trolls is the slowest slow burn I have ever seen in a Dreamworks trilogy.

RAW

2016, dir. Julia Ducournau

BARRY KEOGHAN as JOE Mammal (2016) dir. Rebecca Daly

One Dress a Day Challenge

January: Red Redux

Love and Friendship / Kate Beckinsale as Lady Susan Vernon

In the country, Lady Susan continues to wear demure mourning gowns, but on a trip to London, she lets loose with this spectacular ruby-red satin.

Costume Designer Eimer Ni Mhaoldomhnaigh had this to say about the costumes for this film, which were apparently done on quite a tight budget:

"So this is a little novella that she [Jane Austen] wrote, one of the first things that she wrote, so it’s set earlier than most of her big novels like Pride and Prejudice and all of those. So we decided to set the film a little bit earlier also, like late 1780s or 1790s, so the fashion between 1790 or even the mid 1790s really changed quite dramatically. A lot of it was influenced by the French revolution, historical events that were happening at the time.... I really kind of pushed for setting it in the late 1780s. It’s a comedy as well, these big dresses, these really lend themselves to--there’s such a drama about those costumes. I just felt  that it would really add to the performance, the door would open and she went swoosh into the room (laugh) and this huge dress, o my gosh, these dresses are built for something like this, for drama and comedy and fun."

Lily Gladstone in Certain Women (2016)

OBSESSED with how this movie is picking up on so many previous styles but it’s SO GOOD like

Certain angles of Leo in the MM trailer makes him look like Jim Henson’s 1991 Leo

You got the first time Donnie was ever loaded with gear and accessories Michael Bay style circa 2014/2016

Raph got the combo-wombo of Bay 2014/2016 and ROTTMNT. Not only his bandana but even the shape of his body/plastron (more square/stocky)

MIKEY! BABY BOY WITH THE DEEPST VOICE OF THE 4. He is so interesting because he doesn’t look like any other version of Mikey other than really the 1987 cartoon and a teeeny bit of 2k3. They kept him very classic but SO iconic.

CHEF’S KISS

Colossal (2016)

Colossal deals with several subjects that, in a straightforward story, would be off-putting. By sneaking them into a science-fiction kaiju film, it gives you a lot to think about when you least expect it.

Gloria (Anne Hathaway) is a mess. After her boyfriend breaks up with her, she returns to her hometown and reconnects with her childhood friend-turned bartender Oscar (Jason Sudeikis). She struggles even harder than before to reign in her alcoholism just as a giant bipedal kaiju appears in Seoul, South Korea.

As you might guess from the poster, this is a movie about a woman who discovers she’s able to control a giant monster halfway across the world like it’s a motion-capture suit. It’s an unusual premise. You’re immediately intrigued. The monster only appears when she walks through a specific playground a little after 8:00 am. Why would a grown woman be in that one spot? Because she’s been up all night drinking and hanging out with a bunch of losers. If Gloria were a person whose life was tidier, it would be a non-issue. Unfortunately, the colossal beast is a problem specifically because Gloria is an alcoholic whose life has been defined by one bad decision after another.

From there, you could go in several directions. Colossal chooses to start talking about toxic masculinity, marital abuse, and the way cataclysms/tragedies in faraway countries can feel like they’re not even real. I bet you didn’t see that coming.

As Gloria comes to grips with the fact that she accidentally killed hundreds of people and demolished a good chunk of a city - albeit accidentally - she finally decides to sober up and get her act together. Unfortunately, Oscar takes issue with her change in attitude. She never explicitly said that she wanted a new boyfriend but Tim (Dan Stevens) kind of broke up with her and that left her where? Living all alone, in an empty house with no job. The way Oscar sees it, he came to her rescue and now, she owes him.

The smart thing about Colossal is that Oscar doesn't show his true colours immediately. He’s genuinely helpful when they first reconnect. Gloria’s a mess. She needs a wake-up call, a job and support. Oscar provides some of those but ultimately, wants her to stay weak. As long as she is, she will continuously need his "help”. When he figures out the connection between the playground at 8:05 a.m. and South Korea, the people there become the children imprisoned in an abusive marriage. If Gloria doesn’t do exactly what he tells her to, who knows what Oscar might do to them. Would he be willing to do what he does if those people spoke English or lived in North America? probably, but some of the early-movie goofy antics wouldn’t have happened, that’s for sure. What started off as something absurd "over there" now hits home.

Colossal is a mashup of genres whose mix says more than it could have if it were conventional. Most giant monster movies bring up environmental issues or remind us of how small we are; they don’t zoom in on a single person and ask you to re-examine their character based on how "helpful" they are. This means it doesn’t contain the giant monster tropes you would expect but that’s a good thing. The people who should see this movie wouldn’t have walked into it if what it was really about was advertised on the poster and for the rest, it’s a terrific surprise that’s subtle and smart. The ending is particularly clever and satisfying, though it does overexplain things a little bit too much. That’s the only flaw in the film.

Colossal is expertly acted, with Hathaway delivering a particularly strong performance and Sudeikis playing a creep so well it might make you suspicious of his future characters. It's smartly written, deep, thrilling, and unexpectedly fun considering the issues it tackles. (On Blu-ray, June 10, 2021)