All-Star Cast Highlights Official ‘Life’ Trailer

October 30, 2016

Sony Pictures released the first trailer for ‘Life’ during Sunday night’s episode of AMC’s ‘The Walking Dead.’

This Memorial Day, be careful what you search for.

‘Life’ tells the story of the six-member crew of the International Space Station that is on the cutting edge of one of the most important discoveries in human history: the first evidence of extraterrestrial life on Mars. As the crew begins to conduct research, their methods end up having unintended consequences and the life form proves more intelligent than anyone ever expected.

The film is directed by Daniel Espinosa from a screenplay by Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick, and stars Jake Gyllenhaal, Rebecca Ferguson, Olga Dihovichnaya, Ariyon Bakare, Hiroyuki Sanada, and Ryan Reynolds.

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Rob Liefeld, “Quentin Tarantino Will Not Direct A Sequel” (‘Deadpool 2’)

Matthew Sardo

October 30, 2016

Last weekend the petition to get Quentin Tarantino to direct ‘Deadpool 2’ hit the internet and started a buzz. At the time we published this article the petition had 16,142 supporters.

This weekend while a guest at MegaCon Tampa, the creator of Deadpool, Rob Liefeld sounded off about the possibility of Tarantino helming part two of the Deadpool adventures.

“Quentin is not going to direct a sequel, he’s goings to direct his own original stuff,” said Liefeld.

The creator would not weigh in with his personal choice to the direct the film at the request of 20th Century Fox.

‘Deadpool 2’ stars Reynolds, the plot details of the sequel have been vague at best. We know that Cable, Domino, and time travel are involved. 20th Century Fox is looking at a January 2018 release date for the “Merc with a Mouth.”

Cable and Domino 'Deadpool 2' — Cable and Domino ‘Deadpool 2’

‘Deadpool’ made $782 million in 18 weeks at the box office, and broke several records. It’s the highest grossing X-Men film from 20th Century Fox, the second highest grossing R-Rated film behind ‘The Passion of the Christ.’ Biggest R-rated opening weekend with $132.7 million over Friday-to-Sunday. Biggest opening weekend for a first-time director. ‘Deadpool’ even beat Star Wars, with the biggest 20th Century Fox debut ever.It bested the $108 million Fri-Sun debut of Fox’s ‘Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith’ back in 2005.

Thank you to Forbes for the stats.

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‘I’m Not Ashamed’ Review: Columbine + Christianity = Questionable Taste

Will Ashton

October 30, 2016

I’m Not Ashamed is not quite as bad as you’d think. That sounds like faint praise, and it undoubtably is, but it’s also a classic example of when the movie envisioned in your head is a lot worse than the movie you end up seeing. Based on the life of Rachel Scott, one of the 12 student victims of the Columbine shootings targeted based on her religious beliefs, and produced by PureFlix, the Christian filmmaking banner behind God Not’s Dead 1 & 2, you’re right to assume this is going to be a rigorous exercise in bad taste, artistic manipulation and evangelical propaganda.

Its very existence is surely going to leave a bad taste in a lot of viewers’ mouths, and the ones with tickets in hand lining up to the door will already have their opinions made before seeing a single frame. I know this one to be true based on the crowd I saw it with, who were practically ready to give it a standing ovation at the opening credits. But for all its poor judgement and seemingly crude intentions, there is a beating heart at the center, one that would be arrogant to ignore or put down offhandedly.

The key is Masey McLain, the actress portraying Scott, who is a blossoming ray of sunshine across murky waters. Her warm presence, matched by her genuine sorrow and well-grounded sincerity, gives life to an otherwise shallow, ill-minded motion picture. The sweetness she brings never feels ill-gained or misinformed. There’s a real humanity to her Rachel Scott, and that, in turn, makes I’m Not Ashamed seem more righteous and goodhearted in its intentions. We might not agree with the film’s politics (or, at least, I don’t completely agree with them), but I felt for McLain’s performance, a truly great piece of character work in a film with an unsubtle agenda. If you ever wanted to know if a really good performance can save a poor film with undefined direction from Brian Baugh (To Save A Life), awkward writing from Philipa Booyens, Robin Hanley, Kari Redmond and Bodie Thoene, and bland supporting characters, this movie makes a pretty good case, if not an entirely convincing one.

There are some truly affecting moments in I’m Not Ashamed, and it’s easily the most accomplished PureFlix production to date. But the positives are almost always outweighed by the negatives, and that’s most apparent in the treatment of Klebold (Cory Chapman) and Harris (David Errigo Jr.), the shooters behind the tragedy. Portrayed as Neo-Nazis who love violent video games and quietly relate to Hitler in history class, in the movie’s most unintentionally humorous scene, this is where I’m Not Ashamed is at its most blandly one-dimensional and horrifically tone-deaf. I’m not suggesting they be portrayed as heroes or anything, but the film is so desperate to make Rachel look divine in comparison to these killers that they make Gollum blush in their obsessive tendencies.

Their scenes are laughable at best and aggressively insensitive at worst. It complete obliterates the movie’s message of open-minded tolerance if these characters are so fundamentally evil on paper, without any redeeming qualities whatsoever. It actively makes the film lose any real depth or honesty, and the filmmakers’ stunning refusal to look at this tragedy away from their own coincided worldview is when I’m Not Ashamed is truly at its most condescending and ugly.

But, again, I doubt the people behind I’m Not Ashamed wanted this movie to be a fair, honest account of these chilling events. The film doesn’t advocate for gun prevention, perhaps fearing that they’ll alienate their conservative-minded audiences, and it has no interest in delving into the killers’ emotional psyche, because then they would have to ask complicated questions. They don’t want to make Elephant, or Bowling for Columbine. Instead, I’m Not Ashamed means to look at one person in this complicated affair told in a rather uncomplicated manner.

As a character piece, it’s not terrible. Beyond her extreme religious beliefs, Rachel feels like a relatively well drawn-out character, primarily thanks to McLain, and that’s what makes her death hold impact, particularly in one memorial scene amongst friends/fellow students with real emotional power. In many ways, I’m Not Ashamed is irresponsible, closed-minded and poorly-conceived. One merely has to look at the trailer to see that’s the case, though. All things considered, this is an occasionally uplifting, emotionally-charged movie made under the wrong conditions. If nothing else, it proves McLain has a bright future ahead of her — at least, away from these PureFlix movies.

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Producer Says a Third ‘Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles’ Film Is Unlikely

Kris Solberg

October 30, 2016

Fans of the rebooted Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles universe will be disappointed to hear the news that a third film in the series is unlikely to happen anytime soon. In a recent interview with Collider, producer Andrew Form said “I don’t think there’s Turtles 3, but I wouldn’t say there’s never going to be another Turtles movie.”

This year’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows grossed 245 million worldwide on a 135 million dollar budget, which means that once marketing costs get added to the total budget the film ended up losing a fair chunk of money at the box office. This stands in contrast to the first film’s 493 million worldwide gross on a 125 million dollar budget, which gave the studio a solid win in 2014.

While the second film generally saw better reviews than its predecessor, audiences didn’t give it a fair chance to soar. It is possible the 2014 flick left a bad taste in some viewers mouth’s, so they didn’t want to give the sequel a try. It is also possible that the film drowned in an otherwise packed comic book movie line-up this year, which saw Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, Captain America: Civil War, and X-Men: Apocalypse all opening before its domestic bow in June.

When asked his thoughts about the failings of the film, Form said “We’re still so proud of the movie; it just didn’t find an audience.” It seems he’s learned from his mistakes with this film though, adding ” I think one thing we did learn is you really need to give—you can’t just add characters to a movie and expect that to be what’s fresh.”

With a packed slate of upcoming releases like The Purge 4, a Jack Ryan TV show, and a Friday the 13th reboot, hopefully this means that Form has learned a thing or two about bringing successful projects to the big screen.

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Review: Is ‘Patlabor: The TV Series’ Still Watchable?

Conlan Murphy

October 30, 2016

With a planned remake in the works, the question will be “Is the original ‘Patlabor: The TV Series’ Still Watchable?” Yes. It is still watchable, and it’s still good. In the 26 years since it ended, technology has changed dramatically, but that change is not too jarring or noticeable within the series. We no longer think of advanced computers running on disks or about elite police carrying revolvers, but the rest lines up with today’s technology and culture. There’s no cliché 80’s pop or retro-looking character designs. Even the art style doesn’t have an outdated feel to it. The jokes, as well, hold up to a scrutinizing modern audience. The series has multiple strong women. ‘Patlabor: The TV Series’ feels like it could have been made ten years ago then almost 30.

There are other good reasons to give it a try:

First of all ‘Patlabor’ is hilarious. It’s filled with traditional slapstick comedy and the genuinely funny antics of its characters, without feeling too stupid or silly. It has very little sex humor or fanservice, which is refreshing. ‘Patlabor’ also has a lot of action. It has visually and technically impressive fight scenes throughout series. Some of the fights actually do leave you in suspense about who is going to win, and many make you wonder how the heroes are going to survive. ‘Patlabor’ can also transition very quickly into a serious drama. Several episodes in Part 1 feature recurring corporate villains and all of those episodes are dark and suspenseful without upsetting tempo or flow.

‘Patlabor’ is a character-centric show. The eccentricities and relationships of the main cast drive the story and the plot. Even the supporting characters feel organic given well-developed backstories. The main characters are complex, and they are just plain interesting. You’ve got: Noa, the weird eccentric girl; Asuma, the scrappy rich kid at odds with his parents; Kanuka, the seemingly perfect American; and Goto, the almost all-knowing Commander. These are compelling characters who are easy to get attached to. The characters are not unique archetypes, but neither are they ones usually found in police procedurals. They are also not retro archetypes. The personnel of Special Vehicles Unit 2 are firmly believable as an elite unit.

The ‘Patlabor’ universe not only makes logical sense, but it’s also big enough to give a sense of reality. While implausible, the origin of the labor mechs as construction equipment is continually restated and reinforced, becoming an accepted part of the background. Other background entities, such as a military labor unit and a fictitious high-tech terrorist organization, also make enough appearances to quickly become realistic groups who exist in the periphery of the story. That is good writing.

Finally, ‘Patlabor’ is well formatted. While the show is usually listed as one season, it’s divided into three parts. The first part, covering episodes 1-24, was the original length planned for the show. Episodes 25-36 comprise a long follow-up arc, using villains from part 1. And episodes 37-47 neatly tie up the series. Enough is resolved at the end of each part you could stop watching and feel satisfied with what you had seen.

‘Patlabor’ is not outdated. It’s still compelling, and you should watch it.

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Review ‘Doctor Strange’ – An Excellent Marvel Adventure

Kieran Freemantle

October 30, 2016

The movies within the Marvel Cinematic Universe have to walk a delicate tightrope between being unique and different while also being familiar. Their latest movie Doctor Strange succeeds in achieving this balance – bringing one of the most expansive worlds from Marvel Comics and doing it through the tried and tested Marvel style.

Stephen Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) is a brilliant but arrogant neurosurgeon whose skills surpasses his colleagues. However, after a car accident, Doctor Strange suffers irreversible nerve damage in his hands. Desperate to find a cure Strange spends the last of his money to get to Nepal and finds a secret order of people who protect the world from mystical threats. Under the tutelage of its leaders, The Ancient One (Tilda Swinton) and Karl Mordo (Chiwetel Ejiofor) learns the mystic arts. But the world is under attack from a former master of the order, Kaecillius (Mads Mikkelsen), a madman willing to break time and reality for his own reasons.

2008’s Iron Man was a successful template for a Marvel movie especially for an origins story: ideas from Iron Man ended up being used in Thor and Ant-Man as well. Doctor Strange has even more in common with Iron Man because both leads are cocky men who after an event develops a disability which forces them to take up their superhero persona. Stephen Strange is the character most like Tony Stark, having similar personalities and like Iron Man and Ant-Man, Doctor Strange has to focus on the training to become a hero. There is plenty of humor that matches what has happened in previous MCU entries, Cumberbatch quips a lot like Robert Downey Jr. and Paul Rudd, as well as offering up some excellent visual gags. Doctor Strange is a movie of two halves, the first being Stephen Strange learning the mystic arts and the second being pretty much non-stop action.

Benedict Cumberbatch is the most obvious casting choice possible to play the superhero, and he did not disappoint. He had the perfect blend of brilliance and superiority complex. Cumberbatch already showed these skills in Sherlock who is hardly a modest character and the scenes when he was in the hospital made him seem like a more obnoxious version of Dr. Cox from Scrubs. Ejiofor as Mordo was cast in the mentor role, and he is clearly being made a part of the MCU for the long-term. Benedict Wong was also a memorable presence as Wong the librarian, being a funny folly to Doctor Strange. There was controversy with the casting of Tilda Swinton as The Ancient One because in the comics the character is a man of Asian descent – the film version is a Celtic woman. Despite this controversy, Swinton is an actress who gives Doctor Strange an extra bit of gravitas and made a great mentor for Cumberbatch’s Strange.

Due to the mystic and fantasy elements of the movie, it makes Doctor Strange work as a standalone as well as a Marvel movie. There are references to the wider franchise but these are more winks to the fans – newcomers to the MCU and the Doctor Strange character can easily follow the film. The setting is a little like Harry Potter, it’s a world within a world filled with magical objects and characters needing to learn how to master magic. The other influences on the movie are Inception and The Matrix – Doctor Strange is about different worlds and realities and how they can be manipulated. Like The Matrix, Doctor Strange shares an influence from Eastern Philosophy and Spiritualism with The Ancient One speaking in proverbs and giving Strange some tough lessons. Doctor Strange borrows some of Inception‘s visuals – the big moment being the action sequence in an alternative version of New York with the city being bent in many ways. It was like the Paris manipulation scene in Inception on steroids, and it was the action highlight of the film. Doctor Strange also comes across as the movie 2011’s Green Lantern should have been, showing an expensive world, fantastic visuals and unlike Green Lantern showing Strange work as a part of a team to save the world.

Doctor Strange also sees director Scott Derrickson and writer/former film critic C. Robert Cargill reunite since working on the horror movie Sinister. Together they make a visually spectacular superhero movie, especially when it shows the other dimensions and when characters showcase their powers. It was a movie apparently made by people who are fans of the MCU as well as sci-fi and fantasy in general.

As well as sticking to strengths of the Marvel formula that works. Doctor Strange also has the weaknesses – a weak villain and a generic love interest. Mads Mikkelsen plays the villain, something he has already done so in Casino Royale and Hannibal. He was linked to the MCU before – he was attached to play Malekith in Thor: The Dark World. Mikkelsen is a terrific actor and he was one of the better villains in the MCU but considering the MCU’s poor record (excluding Loki and The Red Skull) it was not much of an achievement. His best moment was a joke where he didn’t understand what Doctor Strange’s name was. Rachel McAdams’ role could easily have said ‘Love Interest’ in the screenplay. She was a perfectly charming enough presence but she hardly had anything to work with.

Fortunately Doctor Strange breaks the trend of unremarkable MCU scores by hiring Michael Giacchino, an A-list composer who has worked on Pixar films and the Star Trek and Mission Impossible series. He used male choirs through the movie, giving it a memorial, Tibetan song and it is the best score in an MCU movie since The Avengers.

Doctor Strange is another fantastic entry for the MCU, being one of the most visually spectacular movies from that series and is a strong origin story for the Sorcerer Supreme. It is one of the higher ranked MCU films.

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Box Office Breakdown: ‘A Madea Halloween’ Repeats; ‘Inferno’ Stumbles

Kris Solberg

October 30, 2016

It was a slow weekend at the domestic box office, with holdover Boo! A Madea Halloween crowned champion in its second weekend. The film is the seventh entry in Tyler Perry’s highly successful Madea series. With a strong 41.5% drop, the film’s 16.7 million was enough to pull ahead of Inferno, the third film in the Robert Langdon series.

Reuniting director Ron Howard and star Tom Hanks, Inferno stumbled domestically with a mere 15 million dollar opening weekend haul. That represents a staggering 30 million drop compared to Angels & Demons’ 46.2 million dollar opening in 2009, and a whopping 60 million drop compared to The Da Vinci Code‘s 77 million dollar opening in 2006. While audiences in the U.S. have shown little interest in the third film in this series, the film has already collected over a 130 million at the international box office. So the flick will likely give Columbia Pictures a nice profit given its 75 million dollar budget.

The film’s domestic failings represents another headache for director Ron Howard, who has struggled to find an audience for his recent outings. Last year’s In the Heart of the Sea earned a paltry 25 million domestically (93 million worldwide), and made a big dent in Warner Brothers’ profit margin given the film’s 100 million dollar budget. Earlier, both Rush and The Dilemma had struggled to find a solid base for Howard’s directorial efforts. Outside of the Langdon series, Howard hasn’t had a solid hit since 2001’s A Beautiful Mind.

In other holdover news, Jack Reacher: Never Go Back dropped 58.2% in its second weekend for a 9.5 million dollar haul. The film now stands at 39.6 million domestically, and 93.8 million worldwide. While the film won’t get anywhere close to the original’s 218 million haul, it is likely to give its studio a slight profit once it opens in its remaining markets in November.

Rounding out the top 5 are The Accountant and Ouija: Origin of Evil with 8.4 and 7 million respectively.

Next weekend will likely bring more excitement with the domestic bow of Marvel’s Doctor Strange, Mel Gibson’s comeback flick Hacksaw Ridge, and the animated flick Trolls.

To get the full box office results for the weekend, go to Box Office Mojo.

Top 10 Box Office Earners, October 28th-30th

Boo! A Madea Halloween: 16.7 million. 52 million worldwide total.
Inferno: 15 million. 147.7 million worldwide total
Jack Reacher Never Go Back: 9.5 million. 93.8 million worldwide total.
The Accountant: 8.4 million. 72.1 million worldwide total.
Ouija: Origin of Evil: 7 million. 43.7 million worldwide total.
The Girl on the Train: 4.2 million. 122.4 million worldwide total.
Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children: 3.9 million. 243.4 million worldwide total.
Keeping Up With the Joneses: 3.3 million. 15.8 million worldwide total.
Storks: 2.7 million. 153.5 million worldwide total.
Ae Dil Hai Mushkil: 2.1 million. 11.2 million worldwide total.

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Is Found Footage a Genre Or a Trope?

Kris Solberg

October 30, 2016

Screen Junkies is a YouTube channel that got its fame from Honest Trailers, a well-known segment where they tend to shred well-known films for various flaws. Over the last few years they’ve expanded their repertoire, and one of these new additions is a show called Movie Fights. On this show, three contestants argue over a variety of topics relating to movies. On this week’s episode, the contestants were asked what horror trope they’d want to get rid of. Josh Robert Thompson (voice of Geoff on The Late, Late Show with Craig Ferguson) said found footage, to which Ben Begley (actor in The Hungover Games) argued that it was a genre, and not a trope. While they never really came to a consensus, it did bring up an interesting question: Is found footage a genre, or a trope?

Found footage as a stylistic choice is most prominent in the horror genre. It became a popular choice for low budget productions after the release of The Blair Witch Project in 1999, but was featured in other films before then (i.e. Cannibal Holocaust). Since the release of Blair Witch Project it has been used in countless films, some hits like Paranormal Activity and others you’ve likely never heard of like Bigfoot: The Lost Coast Tapes.

This format’s appearance in other genres than horror makes it more of a trope than an individual genre. There are a plethora of genres that have used found footage as its method to convey its story, and no one would really argue that films as varied as End of Watch, Chronicle, and Paranormal Activity belong in the same genre. Additionally, you’d likely never use found footage as a way to describe the themes within a film, which once again makes it more of a trope than a genre. Saying a film is found footage doesn’t actually tell the viewer anything about what the story is going to be about, only what format it will be told in.

While it might appear that found footage is worthy of being called a genre, it is nothing more than a stylistic choice to convey a story. As such, it is much more of a trope than an individual genre.

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Five Movies Ready to Become Binge Worthy TV Shows

Manuel Gomez

October 30, 2016

Fargo, The Exorcist, and Lethal Weapon. What do these three have in common? Well besides being certified classic movie hits, the three properties have also been successfully adapted into acclaimed and high rated shows. Networks and showrunners have taken their love for the original films and expanded and molded them to fit into the new Golden Age of Television that we are living in. With that in mind, here are what I believe are five classic movies that could be reborn on the small screen.

The Monster Squad

Stranger Things was without a doubt on of this year’s biggest pop-culture phenomena. It really did grab audiences from every spectrum. The 80s classic The Monster Squad could do the same. Just think about it, Shane Black’s and Fred Decker’s script already has the same seeds; plucky teens and pre-teens fighting monsters. But in Squad’s case, it’s not just one creature, but multiple ones, inspired by all the classics. We have Dracula, a werewolf, a mummy, a sea creature, and Frankenstein’s monster. A TV show could expand the storyline and have the kids fighting even more things that go bump in the night. Dracula could serve as the “Big Bad” working from the shadows and summoning monsters as the kids fight new threats every episode, building to a true apocalyptic battle. New characters like a Van Helsing descendant could be added. It could be a Buffy The Vampire Slayer style comedy AND drama, where the stakes (ha ha) are very real. An 8-10 episode arc on a streaming service like Netflix would be perfect for this.

Police Academy

Everyone knows the Police Academy series, there was even a cartoon and action figure line. The set-up is classic; loveable underdogs and screwballs trying to make it through together. Imagine if a network like HBO took this property and handed to someone like Jody Hill (Eastbound & Down). Not only could the “T&A” humor remain intact, but with its multitude of characters, you could have a true ensemble comedy cast and various storylines. Hell, bring back Steve Guttenberg as Mahoney, who could now be tasked with running and saving his beloved academy with a new group of lovable losers. And you gotta keep the classic “Blue Oyster” scene. You have no Police Academy without it.

Who Framed Roger Rabbit?

Okay, this one might rub some folks the wrong way, but my idea is more of a prequel than a re-do. In the original beloved Who Framed Roger Rabbit? , Detective Valiant is washed up and only then returning to working with ‘Toons after an ill-fated case left his brother dead and his agency ruined. In the movie, many comments are made regarding Valiant and his brother solving and saving ‘Toons in various previous cases. There is your show right there! Re-cast Eddie Valiant and his brother as young, fresh from the police force P.I.’s. With special effects being light years ahead now, Toontown could be recreated easily. Plus you could also do a slow burn telling of Judge Doom’s origin, the character, and case, that led to the original movie. Based on the timeline, you could also have animated characters from Disney and Warner Bros. Really the possibilities on this one are endless and it seems like a no-brainer.

The Warriors

“Warriors come out and play” is an iconic phrase and the movie itself is a touchstone as well. Walter Hill’s gritty 70s set The Warriors created an intricate and original world filled with fascinating roving gangs in a very surreal New York City. But he only gave us a glimpse, as the demands of the movie structure allowed viewers to spend very little time with each new group The Warriors encounter. Imagine if you could build on that, give the other gangs, like the Baseball Furies (the best gang in the movie, in my opinion), a chance to have more scenes and their own story. You could also learn more about The Warriors individually, or maybe even give the magnetic and enigmatic Cyrus, (who get’s killed in the film’s opening scene and sets off the plot) a much richer back story and larger role. Come on, “Can you dig it?!”

The Hidden

Aptly named, The Hidden is a forgotten classic action/sci-fi movie. Falling within the realm and genre of films like The Terminator and Robocop, it was a high-octane movie with a relentless pace. But it’s story about two warring and alien parasites who inhabit human bodies (one a cop, the other a criminal) created a very cool mythology. Again, a longer format would allow you to expand on that. In the film, the evil parasite hops from body to body, so you would be able to cast different actors in essentially the same role. And as for the alien cop, well everyone loves a fish out of water story and watching this visitor assimilate and try to understand a new world he must also save makes for great dramatics. And of course, you gotta keep the original’s action set pieces, as the alien parasites give their hosts greater strength and endurance. Just imagine the amazing shoot-outs and fights. It would be an instant hit on something like the SyFy channel.

So there you have it folks, all these would be binge-worthy and DVR must record shows. They could all run for at least a couple of seasons and give the original concepts a new life for a new generation. Purists would still have the original movies, and the new format would make them different enough for even them to enjoy. What other movies would you add to the list?

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REVIEW: ‘Mr. Church’ – Touching Human Drama Lacking Emotional Depth

Kris Solberg

October 30, 2016

In recent years, Eddie Murphy has not had a strong career. His last flick A Thousand Words (2012) only grossed 22 million worldwide on a 40 million dollar budget. It’s failure followed other disappointments like Tower Heist (2011), Imagine That (2009), and Meet Dave (2008). His last financial success came with 2007’s Norbit, which grossed 160 million worldwide on a 60 million dollar budget. However, you need to go back to 2006’s Dreamgirls to find his last critical success. The film earned Murphy his first Academy Award nomination, and locked up his first Golden Globe win after four previous nomination.

With a stalling career, any project he agrees to do carries with it anticipation. That’s why when he signed on to Mr. Church, it automatically raised some excitement about the project. The film follows a chef named Henry Church (Eddie Murphy) as he goes to work for a family. As he tells the mom (played by Natascha McElhone), he is there due to an agreement he made with her husband before he died. The film doesn’t really go into much depth on why he agreed to become their chef beyond that. However, we are also told that the mom is dying of cancer, and that Mr. Church only has to care for them until she passes away.

In addition to the mom, we are introduced to the daughter named Charlie (played by Natalie Coughlin). Strangely enough, she is a lot more skeptical about the arrangement than the mother. When she first meets Mr. Church she is dismissive, and not at all interested in having him cook for her. This disinterest continues for quite a while. This is where the film faces its first stumbling block. While it uses Charlie’s animosity towards Mr. Church as a way to develop their bond over time, we are never told why she was so against the idea of having a personal chef in the first place. As other children in the movie makes clear, the prospect of having someone cook delicious food for you three times a day isn’t really something a young child is likely to pass up. So the lack of an explanation for why Charlie is so against it kind of stands out.

She gets used to the idea of having him there though, and they begin to develop a mutual respect for each other. As Charlie grows older (now played by Britt Robertson), the mom eventually passes away. Charlie goes off to college, but comes back to live with Mr. Church after running into some problems at university.

When she lives with him, we gradually begin to learn more about Mr. Church. Their relationship evolves, but never to the extent that’s needed to really give you that emotional pay-off you’ve been waiting for. It’s all fairly superficial, without any real depth. The evolution of their friendship from the beginning lacked any sort of deep-dive into their dynamic, and the film really should’ve given you more during this segment. However, you’re left with a basic understanding of what they think of each other. From that point on, the film unfolds pretty much like a standard family drama. You learn a little bit more about their dynamic later on, and with that revelation Charlie gains additional respect for Mr. Church.

Overall, Mr. Church is a well acted, decently written family drama about love, friendship, and the respect humans have for each other. Robertson and Murphy both shine in their respective roles, with strong turns from the supporting cast as well. Director Bruce Beresford keeps a firm hand over the course of the film, and does a good job bringing Susan McMartin’s script to life. The main fault of the film is its lack of depth into its character dynamics and individual motivations, especially between Charlie and Mr. Church. However, even with this flaw, it still manages to present a deeply touching story that’s well worth watching.

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