The Man from U.N.C.L.E. (2015)

I joked in a tweet that The Man from U.N.C.L.E. may have been a good movie, but I was too distracted by Alicia Vikander's legs to notice. Even though I kid, there did seem to be an unusual focus on them. That could just be me though.

I actually did enjoy The Man from U.N.C.L.E. though. It's pretty straight forward and run-of-the-mill as far as spy films go. There's no twist or turn that you don't see coming from a mile away, and there's nothing special about any of the action. This is probably sounding more like reasons I didn't like it, but what made me enjoy it was a likable, charismatic cast and above average humor. It's not funny to the point where it's a spoof of the genre, but we've already had a few of those this year, so that's probably a good thing.

It's kind of ironic that this stars Armie Hammer and Henry Cavill when just a few years ago I remarked in another review (not The Lone Ranger) that Hammer would be an interesting choice for Superman, only to have Cavill announced as Superman shortly after. Now that I see them acting against each other, I still stand by my statement, and it's not just because Hammer is clearly taller. It did seem unusual to me to cast an American to play a Russian and a Brit to play an American. What's the real motivation behind casting people and them forcing them to do strained accents? Like Jared Harris. What the hell kind of accent was he trying to do?

As far as the rest of the cast goes, I could have used a lot more of the ladies. Alicia Vikander was cute and charming, but it would have been nice to see her fleshed out a bit. There's hints here and there, but they don't follow through. Elizabeth Debicki was one of the few things I liked in The Great Gatsby and I've been waiting to see what she was doing to do next, so I was disappointed to see her underused here. She tries to do her best and has this evil sexiness quality, but there's not much more to her than the cold villain with a generic motivation and undeveloped character. It's not her fault, it's simply an underwritten role.

A friend asked me after I mentioned seeing this if it felt like a Guy Ritchie movie. Unfortunately, it doesn't, and it's not even worth comparing this to things like Snatch or Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels. While there are a few moments in the film that I really enjoyed that did feel like authentic Guy Ritchie moments, this feels more like his Sherlock Holmes movies than his earlier films.

The Man from U.N.C.L.E. is enjoyable enough for a lazy Sunday matinee. It's slick looking and reasonably fun, but you'll forget you saw it an hour later. You won't miss anything if were to wait for rental. I've seen much worse this summer though, so you could do a lot worse during Dump Season.

3 (out of 5) Death Stars

Man of Steel (2013)

Kneel before him...

I was a little nervous when I heard that Zack Snyder's Man of Steel was going to be based around yet another origin story for Superman.  Even with David S. Goyer's writing and producer Christopher Nolan's involvement, I didn't think it needed to be told again.  Is there really anyone out there that has no familiarity at all with Superman's origin?  Even the recent "All-Star Superman" comic was able to beautifully summarize his origin in a single page.

This might have some minor spoilers, so be warned.  It's a lengthy review, so strap in...

Despite my reservations on another reboot of a well known superhero, I enjoyed the few twists and changes made to the origin told in Man of Steel.  Beginning on Krypton, Jor-El (Russell Crowe) warns Krypton's leaders regarding its destruction.  General Zod (Michael Shannon) stages a coup, and Jor-El uses the opportunity to launch a ship containing Kal-El and Kryptonian data to Earth.  Zod's coup fails, and he and his followers are banished to the Phantom Zone.  Kal-El lands on Earth, and well, you know the rest.

Superman's origin as told in All-Star Superman

Where Man of Steel differs is rather than give you a linear backstory, we catch up with Clark (Henry Cavill) as a 33-year-old wanderer, occasionally using his powers to save those in need before moving on.  We get flashbacks of Clark growing up and dealing with the manifestation of his powers, as well as his relationship with Jonathan and Martha Kent (Kevin Costner and Diane Lane).  Much of the film's emotional depth comes from these flashbacks, not just because they give you more insight into why Clark is who is, but because of the great performances of Costner and Lane.  Jonathan is convinced the world is not ready for Clark to reveal himself, and Clark has been spending much of his life trying to figure out what his purpose is and where he fits in.

Another departure from the Superman mythos was how Lois Lane was handled.  Lois, a journalist for the Daily Planet, is following a related story when she encounters Clark.  She investigates further, and is able to determine his true identity.  If you've ever been bugged by the fact that an investigative journalist never figured out that Clark Kent and Superman were the same person, then I think you'll really enjoy this twist.  She even actively protects his identity once she realizes the threat to him and his family.  Amy Adams was an inspired choice for Lois as well.  She had the right combo of smarts, maturity, toughness and ambition for the role.  The movie shines every time she's on-screen.

Zod eventually catches up to Kal-El and the promise of a super-powered smackdown between multiple Kryptonians is finally realized.  If you're like me and complained that Superman Returns didn't have enough action, Man of Steel makes up for that, and then some.  The last 40 minutes of the movie is all action, and it's the type of spectacle you hope for in an action blockbuster.  There's so much action, that it's a little exhausting to watch, but I still enjoyed every minute of it.  It was a joy to see Superman fly around and punch people at super speed.  The effects are fantastic, and there were only a few times where I thought the characters had too much of a CG appearance to them.  They are really getting the look of this stuff down!

Man of Steel is not perfect though.  I thought some of the things it does with the powers regarding atmosphere were a little odd.  Also, I was kind of bugged that the other Kryptonians seemed to be as powerful as Superman.  Superman has been absorbing solar energy for decades, as opposed to days for the other Kryptonians.  While he does show a greater mastery of his powers, I still think he should have had a bigger advantage as far as overall strength, while the Kryptonians should have had an advantage with combat skills.

Another issue I had was that the dialog isn't particularly good.  There's not a ton of dialog in the first place, but some of the lines are really clunky to the point where you'll hear something said and just go, "Huh?"  It definitely could have used a little punch up, as the film is so serious from beginning to end.  There's really much in the way of humor, but I also appreciated the fact that it wasn't silly.  I'm surprised that David S. Goyer didn't find more of a balance in his screenplay.

As much I loved Michael Shannon as Zod, I was a little disappointed he didn't get to have a great line that can be associated with his performance.  We don't even get a 'kneel' reference.  On the other hand, Zod's henchman, Faora (Antje Traue) was totally badass and sexy.  I wish there would have been a little more depth to her character though.  It was awesome to see someone hold their own against Superman like she did.

I also thought the romance between Clark and Lois wasn't handled well.  It happens way too quick without much in the way of flirtation.  I get them being attracted to each other, but it doesn't seem like there's any reason for them to get together other than convenience.  This is the one angle where the changes to the story didn't work as well.  Rather than see their relationship develop over time in the workspace, they are just kind of thrown together and it didn't feel natural.

I enjoyed Henry Cavill as Superman.  I said after seeing him in Immortals that I thought he had the right stature and commanding presence to play the Man of Steel, and I'm glad to see he proved me right.  First off, credit to Cavill and his trainer.  He clearly bulked up for the role, and physically speaking he's the best we've seen to date in the suit.  He's not playing the Clark Kent we're used to seeing, so there's not much of a true comparison to Christopher Reeve or even Brandon Routh's performances.  It's a different role as far as I'm concerned.  It's like comparing Michael Keaton's Batman to Christian Bale's.

The rest of the cast is strong.  I liked the choice of Laurence Fishburne as Perry White, but he's not in the film much.  They try to shoehorn a moment for him toward the end in an effort to give him something to do, and that felt a little odd.  I'm sure in the sequel he'll have a little more screentime if they spent more time at the Daily Planet.  Christopher Meloni as Colonel Hardy was good, and I also liked Ayelet Zurer as Lara Lor-Van.

Some will complain about all of the city-wide destruction and how Clark doesn't really appear to be too concerned about saving anyone, but that didn't really bother me.  While I would have liked to see him save a few people here and there, most of the time he's fighting multiple, super-powered people at once, and these fights happen at hyperspeed.  Man of Steel doesn't really show Superman as having full mastery of his powers yet, so it may not have been possible for him to avoid damaging his surroundings.  You don't see a lot of the Kryptonians directly threatening humans while he's around, so with the speed of the battles, his immediate surroundings might not have always been on the top of his mind.  Plus, he just put on the suit, so he's still growing into the role while attempting to earn the trust of humanity.  I would suspect we'll get more of that in the sequel.

Another thing I liked, and this will probably bug the Superman purists out there, was the fact that they show him conflicted.  I've read the comics off and on, watched the various cartoons and movies, and sat through all ten seasons of Smallville, and the one thing that's always bugged me about Superman is how much of a humorless, sometimes emotionless, boy scout he is.  I love the idea of seeing him start from a darker place and then eventually becoming that ideal.  Some will argue that I or the movie doesn't understand the character of Superman.  Okay, fine, go watch a different Superman cartoon or movie then.  In case you're wondering, I'm old enough to remember seeing Donner's Superman in the theater, and watch Donner's cut of Superman 2 frequently.  I like them all.

There's nothing post-credits, by the way, despite seeing online that there was supposed to be.  This was probably leaked by the effects crew that just wanted everyone to sit through the credits so we could see their names.  I didn't see it in 3D either, but since it wasn't shot in 3D you can go in knowing that's it's not going to add anything to the movie anyway.

Speaking of the visuals, this is another area where I thought the film excelled.  Man of Steel is gorgeous, and I'm not just talking about how dreamy Henry Cavill is.  Some shots may linger on a little too much, but I thought it was a vibrant film and creative looking.  You can always tell what's going on, even during the faster paced fight scenes.  I think Zack Snyder's style and aesthetic really lent itself to the film, and he even avoided his excessive use of slow motion, which I actually wouldn't have minded if he had thrown a little more of that in.  I'm probably in minority of people that enjoy just about all of Snyder's films.  I even like Sucker Punch on a certain level.  I loved the redesigned Krypton.  It looked suitably alien without being a direct copy or reference to previous films.  Also, the suit looked much better on screen than in photos.  The texture of the suit worked well, and I stopped noticing the lack of red trunks pretty early on.

Oh and I almost forgot to mention Hans Zimmer's score, which is hard to believe since he really outdid himself this time.  The score is practically a character all on it's own.  I've been listening to the full soundtrack on Spotify and I really love it.

While somewhat flawed, Man of Steel delivers on the promise of a Superman movie with more emotional depth, and the super-powered smackdown we've been waiting to see in the modern era.  Zack Snyder and co gave us a Superman that's more relatable and realistic for our time.  It would have benefit from a little more humor, but this is made up for by the cast and their performances.  I anxiously await a sequel.  Full price for me.

4.5 (out of 5) Death Stars

(Note: Was originally a four Death Star rating, but I just got back from seeing again and loved it even more, so I'm bumping it half a point.)

The Cold Light of Day (2012) - Movie Review

Don't worry, the title didn't make any sense to me either. You could have just called this "Superman Tries to Get His Bourne On".

When we meet Will (Henry Cavill), he's already having a bad day.  He arrives in Spain for a family reunion that he doesn't want any part of, and learns that his luggage is back in San Francisco.  Most people leave their hearts there, but Will Shaw left his luggage there.  You meet his father, Martin (Bruce Willis), and the rest of his family. Will and his brothers have daddy issues for some reason that we're never really clear on.  Something about Martin's work.  Waa waa waa!  Daddy wasn't there for me, or something like that.

The family goes sailing the following day, but Will is preoccupied with calls, as he learns his business is bankrupt.  Will's lack of focus causes an injury to a family member, so he swims to shore to get medicine.   Upon his return, the sailboat is gone.  He eventually catches up with the boat to find it abandoned and ransacked.  Going to the police doesn't help, and they just lead him back to the beach, where he meets a man that says he knows where is family is and will take him to them.  Instead of going along, Will takes off, chased by the cops.  They catch up to him, but Martin magically appears to fight them off.  He reveals to Will that he's actually been a CIA agent all along, and they need to retrieve some briefcase or their family will be killed.

They meet up with Martin's partner, Carrack (Sigourney Weaver), and the movie doesn't even try to make you believe for a second that she's not the real villain.  Carrack betrays Martin, and Bruce Willis checks out at this point, or maybe he just wanted to collect his check and go home early. It's now up to Will to figure out what's going on and get this briefcase back before it's too late.  What's in the briefcase, you ask?  It doesn't matter, and the movie never even tries to explain it. It could have been a flash drive or microfilm for all it mattered to the 'plot'.

Along the way he meets a cute local named Lucia (Veronica Echegui), who turns out to be Will's half sister.   Yes, in addition to misleading his sons about his career, Martin also had a second family in Spain.  One unusual point is that Martin reveals that while his sons never knew about him being a CIA agent, his wife did.   I'm not sure why it's okay to tell your wife, but not your kids, but whatever.  His reveal that he's a CIA agent was so obvious from the opening moments of the film that it felt pointless to even begin with him pretending otherwise.

The Cold Light of Day doesn't bother with things like making sense.  One of the better examples of this is at one point Will is shot, and he's taken to a safe place (not a hospital) where a random person examines him and announces that there's no bullet in him, even though he was shot in the midsection and there's no exit wound.  Um...thanks for your expert advice there, not-doctor.  I guess he's in the clear then.  Characters behave irrationally throughout, and don't seem to have any issue putting people in danger that they just met.   The story and terrible dialog felt recycled and pieced together from other films.  Even the score felt like it was meant for another movie.  This was written by Scott Wiper and John Petro, who don't have a very impressive resume so far, and they don't do anything creative or original here.

I have a feeling this was something originally meant for direct to video, but they tried to push out during a slow weak in hopes of generating some buzz for Henry Cavil.  This movie isn't going to do it though.  In fact, I'm much less confident that Zack Snyder picked the right guy for Superman now.  I don't dislike Cavill, but he seems too serious (and skinny) and I just can't see him as Clark Kent or Superman.

It's a shame, because when I see names like Willis, Weaver and Cavill on the poster, I had hoped that this would at least have a certain level of quality.  Sigourney Weaver gives the best performance here, but it's odd to me that she seems to now be the default, bad-guy-agent or head of an organization in most of her recent roles.  If she would have played this as over-the-top as Michael Shannon did in Premium Rush, then I'd have an easier time recommending this.  As mentioned earlier, Bruce Willis is barely in this, and his early exit in the film seems to say that even he knew this wasn't going to be very good.  I'm sure he enjoyed his mini-vacation in Spain though.

I can't even say it's a good spy movie, because it's not about a spy.  It's a normal guy thrown into a situation he has no understanding of.  There's lots of chasing between Will and Carrack, but it's all shot in a way that at times you can't even tell what's going on, and it becomes tedious to watch instead of entertaining.  If you're someone that's annoyed by quick cuts and shaky cam work, you get tons of that here.  Some of this shaky cam work is done at night with very little light, so you really can't tell what's going on.  It's all done to cover for poorly choreographed fight and chase scenes.  There's also a lot of awkward mirror shots that may have worked in a better movie, but here just felt like a gimmick.

I'm surprised this didn't turn out better as the director, Mabrouk El Mechri, also directed JCVD, which is an infinitely better film.  I don't know what happened here, but if you haven't seen JCVD yet, rent that instead of bothering with this.

The Cold Light of Day is a totally forgettable thriller that felt like a bad Bourne-clone.  It's completely by-the-numbers and doesn't bring anything new, fun or interesting to the genre.  This is the kind of movie you'd probably think wasn't bad if you caught it on cable recovering from a hangover on a Sunday afternoon and couch surfing.  No need to see this one in the theater.  Save this for cheap rental, streaming or cable.

1.5 (out of 5) Death Stars