Month: April 2022

I’ve made a number of posts about sequels, I know.  I’ve talked about the good, the bad, and everything in between.  But sequels are big business in the film industry.  God knows that Hollywood is always going after the next big blockbuster sequel.  I mean, we are getting a sequel to Top Gun…36 years after the original film came out.  Sequels can be great for pushing a story forward and adding new things to the original film’s mythology.  But sometimes, a sequel is just a sequel either in name only, or there for just being a sequel.  There are some sequels that simply wouldn’t exist if it wasn’t for the fact that the original film was successful.  Jaws is a perfect example.  The original film is a classic in every single way, but the sequels were pretty bad.  So, what I want to do is examine the three biggest sequels ever made.  Why?  Every sequel that you see today owes its existence to the success of these three movies.  Which movies?  The Godfather Part II, The Empire Strikes Back, and Aliens.  Why not anything from the Lord of the Rings Trilogy?  Mainly, I consider the LOTR movies to be one flowing story spread out over three chapters.  With these others, there’s a lot of time that passes on by between movies, in-universe or otherwise.  Another reason why many people consider these to be the best sequels ever made, is because they took what made the original movies so great and expanded on them while delivering what people already knew and loved about the originals.  That’s what a good sequel is supposed to do.  To me, one of the biggest things about these movies is that they are so good, people are still having debates on whether these sequels are better than the originals.  Honestly, I think that’s a great problem to have, and the fact that we’re still talking about these movies today, speaks volumes about how they were made.  So, the question is: Which one do we start with?  For me, that’s an easy question.

The Godfather: Part II

Every cinephile and critic out there can tell you that Francis Ford Coppola’s The Godfather is one of the greatest films ever made.  Any gangster movie made today, owes its existence and influence to The Godfather.  It’s brutal, bleak, and incredibly compelling.  You’ve got outstanding performances from Marlon Brando, Al Pacino, Robert Duvall, Talia Shire, and James Caan.  So, how do you take an incredibly successful movie that won multiple Academy Awards, including Best Picture, and make a sequel?  If The Godfather was about Michael Corleone’s rise to power, Part II is about him consolidating power and eliminating any resistance and competition, making him the most powerful man in America.  If the movie was only about that, it would still be a hell of a film, but the movie goes one step further and throws a prequel into the mix.  I’m not kidding.  While Michael Corleone is taking real control, the film also shows us the origins of Don Vito Corleone, Michael’s father, this time played by Robert de Niro.  These two storylines are constantly switching back and forth, explaining why and how the Corleone family came to power.  In the hands of a lesser film-maker, this would not have turned out so well, but Francis Ford Coppola did it again, and guess what?  Godfather Part II also won multiple Academy Awards, including Best Picture.  That just doesn’t happen in movie franchises.  I think this franchise is the only one where the first two movies BOTH won Best Picture.

Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back

In 1977, George Lucas unleashed a movie into the world that changed the way we approach film-making.  It took the conventions of film-making and turned it on its head.  Star Wars became one of the biggest blockbusters of all time.  People line up for blocks to get in to the movie, and when they did, it was an experience like no other.  From the opening crawl to that giant Star Destroyer coming overhead, it blew people’s minds.  It was light-hearted space adventure that EVERYBODY and their grandparents could enjoy.  So, where do you go from a movie that was the epitome of the theatrical experience?  You take it in a different direction and give it a darker tone.  For most people, myself included, The Empire Strikes Back is the best Star Wars movie ever made.  It takes all of our favorite heroes, and puts them in a situation where they are against the ropes.  Make no mistake about it, the Rebellion loses in this movie.  BIG TIME.  People weren’t so keen on that, but you know everybody loves a comeback story.  But Empire did something else that nobody expected: It revealed Luke’s true parentage: Darth Vader was Anakin Skywalker, Luke’s father.  That was the single greatest twist in cinema history for YEARS.  It pissed off a lot of people, sure.  But when the fervor died down, it made a lot of sense, and set the stage for Luke’s final confrontation with Vader in Return of the Jedi.  It’s a slower movie, but it introduces new characters like Lando and explores the relationships between these characters, especially the budding romance between Han and Leia.  It’s a brilliantly crafted sequel that took a lot of risks.  They paid off, thankfully.

Aliens

Ridley Scott’s Alien is a masterclass in tension-building.  The classic 1979 sci-fi horror shocker was a smash hit.  It was as much a psychological thriller as it was a monster movie.  The psychological aspect was in what you couldn’t see, but you knew that thing was there. When the creature revealed itself, it was terrifying.  It was a brilliantly designed monster by the late, great H.R. Giger.  The best part was that it all felt real.  The ship that they were flying in felt lived in, grimy, and very practical.  These guys were essentially truckers in space.  The movie was incredibly effective by making each of these characters compelling to the point where you didn’t want to see them die.  The chestburster sequence is one of the most iconic moments in the film.  On the heels of The Terminator’s success, director James Cameron was approached to write and direct the follow-up to Alien.  Could he have made a similar claustrophobic horror movie?  Sure.  But did he?  No.  Aliens is a very different kind of movie than Alien, but in the best ways possible.  Where Alien was a thriller/horror movie, Aliens was a war movie.  By setting the film 57 years after the events of the original, James Cameron gave himself the freedom to approach the film in his own way while still maintaining that tension that was so prominent in the first movie.  Like the original movie, you have an outstanding cast which includes the late Bill Paxton, Michael Biehn, Paul Reiser, and Lance Henriksen.  Again, most of these characters you want to see live, even if most of them don’t.  That’s a credit to the outstanding writing.  Fun fact: Sigourney Weaver was nominated for Best Actress because of her performance in this movie.  Aliens is a classic sequel if there ever was one.

In my opinion, Godfather Part II, Aliens, and Empire Strikes Back are the BIG THREE sequels that set the bar incredibly high for all sequels to come.  Some have risen to the challenge like Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior, The Dark Knight, and Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man 2.  But for the most part, most sequels don’t even come close.  Only James Cameron could make a sequel that might be in contention for best sequel with Terminator 2: Judgment Day, but I absolutely stand by these three sequels that have no peer.  If you’re a movie buff like I am, you will already have these movie in your collection, and if you don’t, what the hell are you waiting for?  Get out there and get ’em!  These aren’t just great sequels, they’re great movies.  They are the reason why I love this art form.

With all the drama involving the Academy Awards and stuff this week, I wanted to shift the focus onto something, or rather, someone different: Bruce Willis.  Over the last couple of years, people have been making fun of Bruce Willis’ direct-to-video movies, or more specifically, the amount of DTV movies that he’s been a part of.  Even the Razzies created a specific award for Bruce.  As it turns out, there may be a legitimate reason for why took those movies.  Most people would assume that it was strictly for the money.  That’s part of it.  It just came out this week, according to members of his family that Bruce Willis is “stepping away” from acting.  In simpler terms: He’s retiring from acting.  Why?  He’s only 67 years old.  Well, according to various sources including the L.A. Times, NPR, and USA Today, Mr. Willis was diagnosed with aphasia.  What is aphasia?  It’s a language disorder caused by damage in a certain part of the brain that controls language expression and comprehension.  Essentially, it leaves the afflicted unable to effectively communicate with others.  They also have issues with reading, writing, and speaking.  It’s the kind of disorder that can be devastating to performers.  There’s no cure, and the only treatment is usually speech therapy.  We don’t know how long he’s been suffering from this, but it answers a lot of questions over the last two years at least.  So, the general assumption is that Mr. Willis took all these jobs to make sure that he and his family are financially secure, before he’s really unable to provide for them.

As tragic as that is, the fact that he has decided to step away now, while he can do so gracefully, speaks volumes about his character.  Even if he didn’t have aphasia and decided to retire anyway, he leaves behind a remarkable career and legacy that spans over 40 years.  He’s been in some of the most iconic movies and TV shows in film history.  From Moonlighting to The Sixth Sense, Bruce Willis has entertained audiences for a long time.  So, what I would like to do is talk about some of my favorite movies that he’s been in over the course of his career.

Die Hard

It’s a scientific fact, proven by hard evidence that you can’t talk about Bruce Willis’ career and not bring up the movie that really made him a star: Die Hard.  He stars as a New York cop in Los Angeles to visit his estranged wife at the Nakatomi Plaza when it’s besieged by a group of armed thugs.  This is about as classic an action film as you can get.  Between the awesome one-liners and wise-cracks from Willis’ John McClane, as well as the awesome performance of the late Alan Rickman as Hans Gruber, Die Hard has everything you want in an action movie.  You’ve got a relatable hero that’s put through the ringer, without shoes; you’ve got big explosions and a pace that’s non-stop.

Hudson Hawk

Yeah, I know.  This one got slammed by critics, but dammit I love the hell out of it.  It’s pretty much a live-action cartoon.  The chemistry between Bruce Willis, Danny Aiello, and Andy McDowell is simply too awesome to pass up.  This is absolutely one of the funniest things I’ve seen Bruce Willis do.  Even the villains are blatantly over the top.  While I’m not one to condone violence against animals, the scene where Bruce Willis blows Sandra Bernhard’s dog out of the window using a tennis ball machine is incredibly funny on so many levels.  The movie is so utterly ridiculous that you can’t help BUT smile.  Besides, the hat that Willis wears is awesome.

The Jackal

Bruce Willis has been known to play the good guy in most movies, but every once in a while, he turns to the dark side.  In The Jackal, Bruce Willis plays a cold-blooded assassin who is also a master of disguise.  This guy is ruthless.  Richard Gere plays, Declan Mulqueen, the only guy to see The Jackal’s face and live.  This is more of a cat-and-mouse thriller than a straight-up action movie, but it’s incredibly intense from start to finish.  Willis’ Jackal is one of the scariest bad guys put on screen.

The Sixth Sense

It goes without saying that M. Night Shyamalan’s filmography is filled with ups and downs, but almost nothing in between.  His movies are either really, really good, or they’re really bad.  The Sixth Sense is actually one of his best.  Bruce Willis stars as a psychologist who was hired to talk to a young boy who claims to see dead people.  While most people accuse Shyamalan of forcing twists into his movies, the road to the twist in this one is actually pretty cleverly constructed.  While the story might seem to about Haley Joel Osment’s character, it’s actually about Bruce Willis’.  It’s creepy, it’s dramatic, and it’s one of the best movies of its kind.

The Siege

Before 9/11, most people in the United States never thought about being attacked by terrorists.  They thought that the 1993 World Trade Center bombing was a one-off.  So, movies about terrorism were regarded as harmless entertainment.  The Siege was one of those movies.  This movie is incredibly chilling to watch now in a post-9/11 world.  The things that this movie was talking about we ended up having to deal with in 2001.  We’ve never had to employ martial law, but this movie realistically explores what would happen if we did.  Bruce Willis plays General Deveraux, a high-ranking Army officer that may have been indirectly responsible for the events happening in the movie.  While one could argue that Devereaux is not the villain of the movie, he is NOT the hero.  Bruce gives a very chilling performance as a general willing to do what it takes to restore order, even if it means sacrificing our rights.  It’s a tough movie to go back to, considering everything that’s happened since 9/11.  I still recommend it, though.  It pulls no punches.

The Fifth Element

Now, THIS is a fun one.  The Fifth Element sees Bruce Willis play a futuristic spec ops soldier-turned-cab driver when a fare almost literally falls into his lap.  Turns out she’s an alien that’s supposed to a mysterious “fifth” element which is supposed to destroy an evil force threatening the galaxy.  This is one of the most visually distinctive science fiction movies ever made.  Is it deep?  No, but it’s awesome, regardless.  Bruce Willis is fantastic as Korben Dallas, but he’s surrounded by an amazing cast that includes Gary Oldman, Ian Holm, and Milla Jovovich.  There’s not a thing about this movie I DON’T like.  It’s fun for the sake of being fun, and we don’t really see a lot of that these days.

Armageddon

Sue me.  I love Armageddon.  While Deep Impact is narratively the better of the two asteroid movies, this one’s a lot more energetic and fun.  Starting with a meteor shower that wrecks New York City in the first ten minutes of the movie, it’s a roller-coaster ride to the finish.  Bruce Willis plays Harry Stamper, a world-famous oil-driller that’s been called up by NASA.  There’s an asteroid the size of Texas headed our way, and he’s needed to drill a hole in that big rock to blow it to smithereens.  The cast knows what kind of movie this is, and they are 100 percent committed.  Bruce Willis is crazy awesome here.  Yeah, the movie’s got problems, and I don’t care.  It’s friggin’ amazing.

Bruce Willis’ career is one of a kind.  He deserves respect for a lot of the things he’s done.  While I can’t say that the last bunch of movies that he’s done were any good, the great stuff that he DID do will forever be ingrained in our hearts and minds.  If this IS Bruce retiring from acting, what a career.  Thank you, Bruce, for all the good times.

Released: April 2022

Director: Daniel Espinosa

Rated PG-13

Run Time: 104 Minutes

Distributor: Sony Pictures/Marvel

Genre: Action/Horror

Cast:
Jerod Leto: Michael Morbius
Matt Smith: Milo
Adria Arjona: Martine Bancroft
Jared Harris: Emil Nikols

April 1st.  April Fool’s Day.  This is a day for practical jokes and humor.  I like pranks.  It makes for some pretty lively conversation.  Comedians do it all the time.  What I DON’T like is when movie studios pull fast ones on the audience.  I’ve done posts on marketing and how important it is to advertise your movie/product.  But there has to be a degree of honesty when it comes to advertising.  You don’t want to oversell it or reveal to much, otherwise you spoil whatever it is you’re advertising.  Perfect example?  Terminator Genisys.  The second trailer to that movie revealed to the audience a major plot twist in the movie involving a main character.  It ended up ruining the movie.  On the flip-side, if you don’t reveal enough, you confuse the audience about the movie you want them to see, so they don’t know what it’s about.  There’s a balance that needs to happen in trailers and marketing.  It’s a tough game to play.  But the one thing you DON’T do is lie to the audience.  To be fair, in a lot of trailers, there are some scenes that don’t make it into the final film.  Happens all the time.  Editing happens for a reason, and some of those scenes might not make complete sense in the context of the film’s story, but they’re used to enhance the flavor of the trailer.  But when your trailer advertises a specific character that people are familiar with and are expecting to see him in the main movie only for him to not be there at all?  Guess what?  That’s false advertising, and that’s illegal as hell.  False advertising is not a prank you pull on people.  Morbius did.  But that’s not the only problem this movie’s got.

Jared Leto stars as Michael Morbius, a doctor/scientist who was born with a degenerative blood disease that is slowly killing.  Desperate to find a cure, Morbius injects himself with bat DNA and becomes something entirely different.  Infused with superhuman strength, flight, the ability to use echo-location(bat-radar), Morbius has never felt better.  The problem?  He has to drink blood every 6 hours or he will die, and since he refuses to drink human blood, he drinks synthesized blood that he created.  On paper, the idea behind Morbius is pretty cool.  Vampires are generally awesome…except for the sparkly kind, but I digress.  There hasn’t been a Marvel-based vampire movie since the Blade trilogy, so I was curious to see how they were going to handle the character of Morbius.  Unfortunately, the script was written by Matt Sazama and Burk Sharpless.  For those who don’t know who these jokers are, they wrote the following: Dracula Untold, The Last Witch Hunter, Gods of Egypt, Power Rangers 2017(I did like this one quite a bit, though), and the new Lost in Space show.  To be fair, I enjoyed Dracula Untold, but that wasn’t because of the writing.  When I first heard that Morbius was going to be written by the guys that did Gods of Egypt, any hope of this movie being good went right out the window.  The story really goes nowhere, and it doesn’t tie into the rest of the Sonyverse as the trailers had advertised, and the whole thing feels…empty.  Also: IT’S ANOTHER FUCKING ORIGIN STORY!  How many origin stories have we had over the past decade and a half?  Did we really need another one?  One of the things I appreciated about the new Spider-Man movies was that the character was already established.  Nobody knows who Morbius is.  Then again, nobody knew who Shang-Chi was, and HIS movie was awesome.  There was NO excuse for the way this movie turned out.  They had years to fix whatever problems there were, but they didn’t.  In fact, they made it worse.

Let’s get the good stuff out of the way, because there’s not much.  First of all, the casting is mostly decent.  First off, Matt Smith as Milo was smart.  Matt Smith is always awesome.  He’s a lot of fun to watch, and seeing him be the bad guy was amusing.  Adria Arjona as Bancroft was also a pretty good decision.  Her relationship with Morbius was one of the better aspects of the film.  It actually felt genuine, as did the initial relationship between Morbius and Milo.  I think Jared Leto was inspired casting for the character.  Leto has always been a bit strange, but he’s committed.  This is surprisingly the most restrained that Leto has been in a movie, and it works fairly well.  The design of Morbius is awesome.  The look of the character is great.  He looks terrifying, and the way he moves is fantastic.  Some of the visual effects are pretty interesting.  Not great, but not terrible.  That’s where the good stuff ends.  Tyrese Gibson, who plays one of the FBI agents, looks like he doesn’t want to be there, and totally acts like it.  He served no purpose whatsoever.  The great Jared Harris is completely wasted as Nikols.

Morbius is a movie that has no idea what it wants to be.  Is it a horror movie?  No, it’s far too predictable for that, and it’s violence is incredibly tame for a vampire movie.  Is it an action movie?  No, because the action is nothing but a muddle CGI-ridden mess where you can’t tell who is who and what is going on.  It’s an incredibly confusing mess that needed more time in the editing room.  Speaking of editing, where was Michael Keaton, who was featured so prominently in the marketing?  He was relegated to a piss-poor post-credits scene.  I only know about the post-credit scenes from the Internet, because I didn’t stick around when the credits started rolling.  This movie is a mess.  There are scenes that just don’t make sense in terms of where they’re supposed to be, and some are not long enough.  You can also tell because the ADR is poorly done.  The music?  Shameless.  There is a scene in which Morbius is surrounded by bats and for a moment, you think you’re hearing music from Batman Begins.  It’s on obvious rip-off of a better score.

Considering how often Morbius was delayed, there really should be no excuse for how it turned out.  With some minor exceptions, this is easily one of the worst comic book movies I’ve ever seen.  In fact, I would put it up there with Elektra as one of the worst Marvel movies ever.  Honestly, I hope that there’s some kind of extended director’s cut out there somewhere that can fix some of these problems.  Granted, a lot of them are script-level, so I blame the writers for that, but this is an embarrassing mess.  Sony’s had two decent Venom movies(I’m liking the second movie more as I watch it again over time), plus they had an outstanding partnership with Disney and Marvel Studios for the recent Spider-Man movies.  It’s clear that Sony needs somebody like Kevin Feige to set things straight, because right now, it’s not looking good for what Sony has planned for their Marvel movies.  I’m hoping this is a fluke, and that upcoming movies for characters like Kraven the Hunter are better.  Honestly, I haven’t been this angry with a movie in years.  It’s not as bad as Pixels, which I actually walked out of, but I was struggling not to walk out on this one.  Stay away from this movie, unless there is an extended cut of some kind.  It’s April 1st, and Morbius was a big, fat, fucking joke.