Movie Reviews
Movie review: ‘The Fall Guy’ jumpstarts the summer movie season
When April meets May, the unofficial summer movie season kicks off, ending a long and treacherous few months of movie purgatory between the holiday season and summer break.
Around this time, theaters begin to bloom with an abundance of “popcorn flicks” — fun, lighthearted action or comedy movies that serve as a good time out for a wide range of audiences. “The Fall Guy,” the latest film starring Ryan Gosling (“Barbie,” “La La Land”), checks all those boxes as it commences 2024’s summer movie season.
Directed by stuntman-turned-director David Leitch, who oversaw “Deadpool 2” (2018) and “Bullet Train” (2022), “The Fall Guy” co-stars Emily Blunt (“Oppenheimer,” “A Quiet Place), as Jody Moreno, a first-time director in need of a stuntman after her previous one disappeared under mysterious circumstances. This comes in the form of Gosling’s Colt Seavers, who just so happened to date Moreno on a past movie set before he suffered a back-breaking accident performing a stunt and was forced to quit his job.
The awkward romance that still lingers between the duo grows even more complicated when Colt is tasked with tracking down the superstar actor he stunts for, Tom Ryder (Aaron Taylor-Johnson), who also has gone awol.
“The Fall Guy” is Leitch’s love letter to the underappreciated role of the stuntman, a theme that absolutely permeates throughout the 125-minute runtime. Every aspect of the film is over-the-top and in-your-face, from the constant explosions of the stunts to the absurdist subplot of Colt investigating the absence of his missing actor.
Like Leitch’s previous films, particularly “Deadpool 2,” the humor is meta, with Gosling often breaking the fourth wall, as well as the plot centering around the behind-the-scenes of a campy space film that frequently pokes fun at movies like “Dune” and “Mad Max.” The humor works most of the time, though the physical comedy and recurring jokes are more consistent than the one-liners, which sometimes fall flat.
It’s ironic that “The Fall Guy” starts off with Gosling’s character breaking his back, because Gosling’s back must hurt from carrying the film. He and Blunt both put in excellent performances, and no one would expect any less after their respective Oscar nominations for “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer.” The pair has innate chemistry that sustains the movie and keeps audiences entertained in a surprisingly touching romance.
“The Fall Guy” is at its best when Leitch takes a step back from directing the written quips and lets Gosling drive the movie forward with his natural charisma, but runs into issues when it gets too caught up in replicating the success of Leitch’s prior films.
In particular, Colt’s meta dialogue often seems like it was written for Ryan Reynolds, the star of “Deadpool” who is infamous for breaking character and the fourth wall, instead of Gosling. Gosling fits much better into the role of the character than Reynolds would, so it’s a shame that there’s a dissonance that lingers over the movie when it becomes obvious that some of Colt’s character quirks weren’t molded for the “right” Ryan.
In addition to the sometimes half-baked jokes, the CGI for “The Fall Guy” is genuinely awful, although it doesn’t necessarily always detract from the experience. Most of the time, it adds to the tacky charm of the backstage comedy; however, there are points at which it seems pretty ironic that a movie about stuntmen relies so heavily on computer-generated action.
All in all, “The Fall Guy” is a refreshing, digestible action-romcom that highlights an unsung subgroup of Hollywood glamor. The movie doesn’t quite know when to step off the brakes at times with its layered plot and barrage of banter, but it’s hard not to have a fun time sitting in a theater with a full bucket of popcorn watching Gosling — and his stuntman — set themselves on fire, bungee jump off buildings and drive cars over cliffs.
Rating: 3/5
Movie Reviews
Barroz Twitter Review: Is Mohanlal’s directorial debut with the fantasy film worth a watch? Check out these 11 tweets to know
Mollywood icon, Mohanlal has now ventured into the director’s chair and his directorial debut film Barroz has made its theatrical release today, December 25, 2024. The Malayalam fantasy movie, within hours of release, has gotten some vivid reviews from fans, who have highlighted their opinions on social media.
Well, it seems that Barroz has received mixed opinions from some fans, who have significantly highlighted how the film has not lived up to the expectations considering it being the senior actor’s directorial debut.
Fans have expressed disappointment at the fact that the film’s storyline is weaker, and it is only the specialised use of VFX that has been pulling it all together.
On the other hand, some other fans have appreciated the impeccable acting chops of Mohanlal himself, with special mention to the excellent 3D presentation appealing to mass audiences for more than one reason.
There have been specific references to a few underwater scenes, which have been touted as an epitome of masterclass cinematic presentation, not to forget how it would not hit as a mass entertainer.
Check out the fans’ reviews about Barroz on Twitter:
Mohanlal has left no stone unturned when it comes to the jam-packed promotional spree for Barroz. The film’s cinematography has been done by the talented Santosh Sivan, while the musical score is handled by Mark Killian.
Coming to the plot of the film, it is said to revolve around the conquest undertaken by Barroz, the guardian of a treasure which has been hidden for over 400 years. This wealth has been trusted to only a true descendant of Da Gama.
It is inspired as an adaptation of Jijo Punnoose’s novel Barroz: Guardian of D’Gama’s Treasure. However, the scenes were rewritten by Mohanlal and Thazhathupurakkal Karunakara Panicker, including characters and locations, leading to the exit of the novelist, forfeiting his credits.
Speaking of the cast of Barroz, besides Mohanlal, it stars Maya Rao West, Cesar Lorente Raton, Kallirroi Tziafeta, Daniel Caltagirone, Aadukalam Naren, Tuhin Menon and others.
ALSO READ: Nayanthara enjoys ‘best holiday’ in Europe with Vignesh Shivan and twins; sunsets, long walks and Eiffel Tower sum up her travel diaries; PICS
Movie Reviews
Film Review: The Fire Inside – SLUG Magazine
Film
The Fire Inside
Director: Rachel Morrison
Michael De Luca Productions, PASTEL
In Theaters: 12.25
I’m not a fan of combat sports in real life, yet I find that movies about them are nearly irresistible. Whether it’s Rocky, The Karate Kid, Warrior or the upcoming wrestling flick Unstoppable, the underdog who comes out swinging and bests their bigger, more experienced opponent always plays. It’s also nearly always the same movie, and that’s what makes The Fire Inside a knockout.
In this fact–based story, Claressa Shields (Ryan Destiny, A Girl Like Grace, Oracle) is a young woman from Flint, Michigan, who has one skill and one passion: boxing. Despite limited support from her family, Claressa is taken under the wing of Jason Crutchfield (Brian Tyree Henry, If Beale Street Could Talk, Godzilla vs. Kong), a coach at a local gym. As Jason becomes as much a surrogate father as a coach, Claressa trains with a ferocious determination and earns a spot on the 2012 Summer Olympic team — Claressa “T-Rex” Shields becomes the first American woman to take home the gold in the sport at age 16. From there, Claressa goes from being a poor inner city kid with nothing to … a poor inner city kid with a gold medal overnight. There are no endorsement deals, no professional career and seemingly no new worlds to conquer. As Claressa fights discouragement, she must find a path to lead her beyond a one time victory into a lasting better life.
Rachel Morrison, the first woman to be nominated for an Academy Award for her work on Black Panther, makes a strong directorial debut, coming out swinging. She’s ably assisted by a terrific script by Barry Jenkins (Moonlight). The Fire Inside transcends the tropes of the genre by reaching the rush of climactic fight and then daring not to end there, instead delving into the reality that in Shields’ life, one triumph in the sports world doesn’t change your circumstances, especially for an uncouth young woman with no interest in playing the public relations game and selling a softer, more traditionally feminine image. We’ve heard the cliche “this isn’t just a movie about sports, it’s about life,” but such a candid look at a life-changing moment that does nothing to change your life, and learning how to face this, was something refreshingly new and honest. The often bleak and at times stunningly beautiful cinematography by Rina Yang, along with the stirring score by Tamar-kali, lift the sensory experience and go a long way to making this one a winner.
Destiny shows potential as a breakout star, commanding the screen as effortlessly as Claressa commands the ring. Henry is the highlight of any film he’s in, and The Fire Inside is no exception, with his grounded performance keeping the film moving along and setting the tone for a story about learning that you can still lean on others while you’re believing in yourself. The sizzling chemistry between these two actors drives a poignant and entertaining story to a satisfying and believable conclusion that’s not the one you’re expecting.
The Fire Inside is a breath of fresh air in a genre that far too often settles for stale and dank. It provides enough inspirational warmth to fulfill its duties as an uplifting sports movie, but its got the stamina and the drive to go a few extra rounds and push its own limits. Unlike most boxing films, this champ doesn’t pull any punches. –Patrick Gibbs
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Movie Reviews
Movie review: Reverence to source material drains life from ‘Nosferatu’
Passion projects are often lauded simply for their passion, for the sheer effort that it took to bring a dream to life. Sometimes, that celebration of energy expended can obfuscate the artistic merits of a film, as the blinkered vision of a dedicated auteur can be a film’s saving grace, or its death knell. This is one of the hazards of the passion project, which is satirically explored in the 2000 film “Shadow of the Vampire,” a fictionalized depiction of the making of F.W. Murnau’s 1922 silent horror film “Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror,” in which John Malkovich plays the filmmaker obsessed with “authentic” horror.
This meta approach is a clever twist on the iconic early horror movie that looms large in our cultural memory. Inspired by Bram Stoker’s 1897 novel “Dracula” (with names and details changed in order to skirt the lack of rights to the book), “Nosferatu” is a landmark example of German Expressionism, and Max Schreck’s performance as the vampire is one of the genre’s unforgettable villains.
“Nosferatu” has inspired many filmmakers over a century — Werner Herzog made his own bleak and lonely version with Klaus Kinski in 1979; Francis Ford Coppola went directly to the source material for his lushly Gothic “Bram Stoker’s Dracula” in 1992. Now, Robert Eggers, who gained auteur status with his colonial horror film “The Witch,” the Edgar Allen Poe-inspired two-hander “The Lighthouse,” and a Viking epic “The Northman,” delivers his ultimate passion project: a direct remake of Murnau’s film.
His first non-original screenplay, Eggers’ version isn’t a “take” on “Nosferatu,” so much as it is an overly faithful retelling, so indebted to its inspiration that it’s utterly hamstrung by its own reverence. If “Shadow of the Vampire” is a playful spin, Eggers’ “Nosferatu” is an utterly straight-faced and interminably dull retread of the 1922 film. It’s the exact same movie, just with more explicit violence and sex. And while Eggers loves to pay tribute to the style and form of cinema history in his work, the sexual politics of his “Nosferatu” feel at least 100 years old.
“Nosferatu” is a story about real estate and sexual obsession. A young newlywed, Thomas Hutter (Nicholas Hoult) is dispatched from his small German city to the Carpathian Mountains in order to execute the paperwork on the purchase of a rundown manor for a mysterious Count Orlok (an unrecognizable Bill Skarsgård), a tall, pale wraith with a rumbling voice that sounds like a beehive.
Thomas has a generally bad time with the terrifying Count Orlok, while his young bride at home, the seemingly clairvoyant Ellen (Lily-Rose Depp) is taken with terrifying nightmares and bouts of sleepwalking, consumed by psychic messages from the Count, who has become obsessed with her. He makes his way to his new home in a rat-infested ship, unleashing a plague; Ellen weighs whether she should sacrifice herself to the Count in order to save the town, which consists of essentially three men: her husband, a doctor (Ralph Ineson) and an occultist scientist (Willem Dafoe).
There’s a moment in the first hour of “Nosferatu” where it seems like Eggers’ film is going to be something new, imbued with anthropological folklore, rather than the expressionist interpretation of Murnau. Thomas arrives in a Romanian village, where he encounters a group of jolly gypsies who laugh at him, warn him, and whose blood rituals he encounters in the night. It’s fascinating, fresh, culturally specific, and a new entry point to this familiar tale. Orlok’s mustachioed visage could be seen as a nod to the real Vlad the Impaler, who likely inspired Stoker.
But Eggers abandons this tack and steers back toward leaden homage. The film is a feat of maximalist and moody production design and cinematography, but the tedious and overwrought script renders every character two-dimensional, despite the effortful acting, teary pronunciations and emphatically delivered declarations.
Depp whimpers and writhes with aplomb, but her enthusiastically physical performance never reaches her eyes — unless they’re rolling into the back of her head. Regardless of their energetic ministrations, she and Hoult are unconvincing. Dafoe, as well as Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Emma Corrin, as family friends who take in Ellen, bring a winking campiness, breathing life into the proceedings, while Simon McBurney devilishly goes for broke as the Count’s familiar. However, every actor seems to be in a different movie.
Despite the sex, nudity and declarations of desire, there’s no eroticism or sensuality; despite the blood and guts, there’s nothing scary about it either. This film is a whole lot of style in search of a better story, and without any metaphor or subtext, it’s a bore. Despite his passion for the project, or perhaps because of it, Eggers’ overwrought “Nosferatu” is dead on arrival, drained of all life and choked to death on its own worship.
‘Nosferatu’
GRADE: C
Rated R: for bloody violent content, graphic nudity and some sexual content
Running time: 135 minutes
In theaters Dec. 25
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