First Look at Emma Watson’s Belle Dancing With the Beast

September 30, 2016

New photos from the upcoming live-action Beauty and The Beast film hit the internet this morning, according to Comic Book Resources. The stills feature Emma Watson as Belle dancing with the Beast in the iconic ballroom scene, and in a library in her blue dress.

The photos reveal that Watson’s Belle looks almost exactly like Disney’s original character, in her costumes and her demeanor.

Staying True to the Original

Most notably, this is the first time fans get to see what the live-action version of the Beast looks like. So far, the response is positive.

The live adaptation of 1991’s animated Beauty and the Beast is taking very few risks with design. Everything released so far is pulled frame by frame from the original. Additionally, Alan Menken (Beauty and the Beast, Tangled, Aladdin) is currently working on the soundtrack. Menken is adding three tracks to his original score, created with late partner Howard Ashman. Ashman passed in the middle of production on the 1991 film, after working along with Menken on hits like The Little Mermaid, Aladdin, and Broadway’s Little Shop of Horrors.

The Beast’s design is no exception to this trend. The photo shows a realistic version of 1991’s animated character.

Emma Watson: From Hogwarts to French Fantasy

Another image shows Watson as Belle standing on a ladder, holding two books. She is dressed in the blue outfit from the beginning of the film, so it is unclear whether she is in the Beast’s library, or the library from her town.

Inevitably, fans will compare the bookworm character to Watson’s Hermione in the Harry Potter series. For now, however, we’ll just enjoy comparing the film to its animated original.

Based on Disney’s Academy Award-winning film of the same name, Beauty and the Beast is directed by Bill Condon and produced by David Hoberman and Todd Lieberman, with a screenplay by Stephen Chbosky, Bill Condon, and Evan Spiliotopoulos. Music for Beauty and the Beast is by Alan Menken with Tim Rice, based on the original score by Alan Menken and the late Howard Ashman.

Beauty and the Beast stars Emma Watson (Belle), Dan Stevens (Beast), Luke Evans (Gaston), Josh Gad (Lefou), and Kevin Kline (Maurice). The film also features Ewan McGregor (Lumiere) and Ian McKellan (Cogsworth), Stanley Tucci (Maestro Cadenza), Gugu Mbatha-Raw (Plumette), Audra McDonald (Madame Garderobe), and Emma Thompson (Mrs. Potts).

Beauty and the Beast is set to premiere March 27th, 2017.

Monkeys Fighting Robots Youtube

The Invaders – Roy Thomas’s Take on Timely Comics

Michael Bedford

September 30, 2016

You’ve probably seen them in your local comic shops, collected editions of Roy Thomas‘s run on The Invaders. Starting with Giant-Size Invaders #1 (cover date June, 1975), Roy Thomas and Frank Robbins give readers their own account of the Golden Age of Marvel Comics and the retconned origins of Marvel’s first superhero team, comprised of Captain America, The Human Torch, The Sub-Mariner, Bucky, and Toro.

Although this isn’t my favourite retcon run involving Timely Comics characters, it’s up there on my list, chiefly because it’s one of the first such retcons undertaken by a creative team at Marvel. And, even though the somewhat innocent sensibilities of the ’70s shine through every once in a while, these comics give readers a deeper understanding of the Timely characters’ potential motivations. These characters are also given more depth than their previously one-dimensional representations as superheroes, and superheroes only.

Specifically, The Human Torch provides an interesting character study. Throughout The Invaders’ four-year run, readers experience the often delicate nature of Toro and The Human Torch’s complicated father-son dynamic. But, beyond simply being a distant father figure, the Torch’s synthetic origin causes him no small amount of grief, and becomes the impetus for a rivalry between himself and Captain America.

For the lovelorn teen readers, there’s even a Toro-Golden Girl-Bucky love triangle. I should mention that Golden Girl in this telling isn’t Captain America’s girlfriend Betsy Ross. Instead, Roy Thomas, Frank Robbins, and Frank Springer re-invented her as a Japanese American teenager named Gwenny Lou Sabuki.

But, I’m not here to give away all the juicy stuff. I’m here to review The Invaders’ first adventure from Giant-Size Invaders #1 entitled, “The Coming of The Invaders!” So let’s get to it …

The Coming of The Invaders! – Comparable Stories

The only comparable story-lines that come to mind are Captain America retcons that appear in several issues of Tales of Suspense, starting with #63 (cover date March, 1965), and Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos (#1 cover dated May, 1963), both story-lines written by Stan Lee and drawn by Jack Kirby.

Some cynics might say that Roy Thomas and Frank Robbins were just ripping off Stan and Jack’s early retcons, but that would be a misrepresentation. More than anything, The Invaders represent a loving pastiche of Kirby & Lee’s original work and its subsequent retcons, not a send-up or rip-off of them. It’s obvious when reading The Invaders that Thomas must have enjoyed Timely Comics as a youngster, and wanted to put his own mark on these beloved characters.

The Coming of The Invaders! – Super-Cameos

As in The Marvels Project, which is essentially a retcon of events that happen in The Invaders, there are a helluva lot of walk-ons during this title’s four-year run. I’ve already mentioned Golden Girl, but I won’t name the rest because this article would turn into a laundry list of familiar, and not so familiar, names.

The cameo list for “The Coming of The Invaders” story-line, though without any super-heroic walk-ons, includes President Roosevelt, Hitler, and Prime Minister Winston Churchill! Also, making his first appearance ever is the uber-nationalistic baddie Wilhelm Lohmer AKA Master Man!

The Coming of The Invaders! – The Plot

“The Coming of The Invaders” shows readers a typical “getting the band together” story. An FBI agent contacts Captain America to let him know that Dr. Anderson, a scientist involved in the super-soldier serum experiment that created Cap, is in hospital near death. Cap and Bucky visit Anderson. He tells them that the Nazis have been working on a super-soldier serum of their own.

Anderson tells the star-spangled duo that Nazis kidnapped him and took him to their laboratory. There, Nazi scientists probed his mind for information on Erskine’s original super-soldier serum. Able to extract key information, the Nazis create their super-soldier, Master Man. Upon Master Man’s awakening, though, the Nazi lab comes under attack by The Human Torch and Toro. The fiery android and his young companion rescue Dr. Anderson, but are unable to neutralize Master Man during their attack. So, the FBI orders Cap, Bucky, the Torch, and Toro to stop Master Man who’s en route to Chesapeake Bay in a U-boat.

Once there, Namor the Sub-Mariner reveals his fishy face, he had been incognito among the crew of a British battleship. The five heroes make short work of Master Man. It turns out that the formula used to transform Lohmer into Master Man is only good for a short period. The serum wears off and Lohmer shrinks down to a more manageable size. In fact, in a rare show of usefulness, the diminutive and non-powered Bucky deals the knockout blow.

The Coming of The Invaders! – The Wrap-Up

Namor reveals that British Intelligence asked him to be there to assist in keeping the British battleship safe. The battleship’s need for a super-powered escort becomes clear when we see Prime Minister Winston Churchill disembarking the ship. Churchill thanks them all, and before he leaves them to meet with President Roosevelt he names them The Invaders. After this high-profile meeting, the newly minted team can’t control their patriotism. They charge into the sunset shouting their signature battle cry, “Look out, Axis — Here we come!”

Well, there you have it, True Believers, my review of “The Coming of The Invaders” from Giant-Size Invaders #1. But, if you thought this review would be the final word from The Timely Comics Watchamacallit, you thought wrong. I’ll be back next time with a review of the first story-line from Stan Lee and Jack Kirby’s unforgettable Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos.

Monkeys Fighting Robots Youtube

Retro Review: Why is ‘Speed 2: Cruise Control’ Such a Despised Sequel?

Kris Solberg

September 30, 2016

The name Jan de Bont might not ring a bell to a lot of people, but chances are you’re familiar with his work. Throughout the 80’s and early 90’s, he established himself as a capable cinematographer through films like Die Hard, The Hunt for Red October, Flatliners, and Basic Instinct. In 1994, he made his directorial debut with Speed, a landmark blockbuster that made an action star out of Keanu Reeves and established Sandra Bullock as a leading name in Hollywood.

After the success he experienced with Speed, de Bont went to the heartlands to direct the storm chaser Twister. The film grossed nearly 500 million at the worldwide box office, and enabled de Bont to choose whatever project he wanted. Rather than go with an original property, he choose to return to the franchise where he got his start to direct Speed 2: Cruise Control.

With a whopping 160 million dollar budget, the flick represented a huge gamble on the part of the studio compared to the modest 30 million dollar budget of the original. Despite seeing the return of Sandra Bullock, the film floundered at the worldwide box office, only grossing 165 million worldwide. It was a huge flop, and killed the franchise dead in its tracks. Now, nearly 20 years on, it’s time to look back to figure out exactly why it has become such a hated sequel.

The film opens with a high-speed chase through the L.A. hills, as Alex Shaw (played by Jason Patric) pursue a delivery truck for an unknown reason. Interchanged through the chase is returning starlet Sandra Bullock (Annie) attempting to regain her license. As their paths cross at the end of the chase, Annie is shocked to discover that the person she thought was a quiet beach cop in Malibu was actually a daring member of the S.W.A.T. team. Determined to woo her graces once more, Alex invites Annie on a cruise to the Caribbean, which she reluctantly accepts.

From here the film cuts to the Seabourn Legend, a Norwegian cruise liner set for St. Martin. Our happy couple embark along with the other passengers before the ship sets sail. Once on-board, they meet Geiger, played by instantaneous bad guy Willem Dafoe, as well as every other principal cast member of the film. The boat casts off, and away we go.

Well into the film, Geiger takes control of the ship and forces the crew to evacuate most of the passengers. Those remaining are set on a collision course with an oil tanker. Alex makes several failed attempts to stop the boat, but manages at the last minute to veer it off course to avoid collision with the tanker. The feeling of relief is short-lived however, as the ship finds its new course heading straight into a small coastal town in St. Martin. The subsequent collision is the film’s biggest action scene, and allegedly cost 25 million dollars to film. Despite its age, the practical and visual effects still hold up, so the scene still looks quite spectacular.

Safely docked inside the city, Alex sets off after Geiger who kidnapped Annie earlier in the film. He hijacks a local man’s boat, whom interestingly is the same man which got his car hijacked in Speed, and begins his chase. After catching up with Geiger and Annie, he rescues his beloved and they narrowly escape the plane. Without a hostage, Geiger crashes into the same oil tanker he had plotted for the Seabourn Legend to collide with earlier in the film. While surviving his initial collision, his plane sparks fire, causing the entire oil tanker to blow up.

Hearing the plot summarized like that makes the film sound like a standard action flick. It’s a by-the-numbers blockbuster, so why is this film so despised? As of this review, it is sitting at a 3.7 on IMDB, a Metascore of 23, and only 3% on Rotten Tomatoes. The film only earned 165 million worldwide, while the original earned 350 million with only 1/5 of the budget.

The biggest reason for audiences malice towards the film is its failure to live up to expectation. Fans of the first flick went in expecting a high-octane thrill ride from start to finish that could rival the original. Instead they got a methodical slow-burning action thriller more interested in showing you how the villain achieved his goal, than filling the movie with meaningful set pieces. The predictability of its character arcs adds to this issue. If you want to have a slow-burning film, the likely path of your characters needs to be hidden. If you populate your movie with action archetypes, it is hard to keep your audience engaged through a methodical build-up as they will uncover your reveal right away.

There are other issues as well of course, but most of those are simply standard rationality issues with blockbuster action flicks. Like why didn’t they just turn the ship away from the harbor once they realized the bow thrusters enabled them to steer? Or why didn’t they use flares to warn the oil tanker that they couldn’t steer earlier on? Or why would Geiger evacuate the ship if he was willing to kill the remaining passengers by steering it into the oil tanker?

The point is, for all intents and purposes, Speed 2 is a standard action blockbuster. It has a cheesy villain with the craziest crazy eyes of all time, a solid concept, a capable cast, and some cool action sequences. Unfortunately, it had to follow one of the greatest action flicks of the 90’s, and no amount of crazy eyes will drag it up to that level. People hate it cause they feel cheated out of something as creative as the original. If it’d been released under the name Cruise Control, it likely would’ve fared a lot better.

Monkeys Fighting Robots Youtube

Getting Ready for Netflix’s Luke Cage – the bullet points

Dan Hex

September 30, 2016

Getting Ready for Netflix’s Luke Cage – the bullet points

It seems like the whole world is ready to binge-watch Netflix’s new series, Luke Cage. Part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Luke Cage continues the tales of Marvel’s “street level” characters. The characters of Luke Cage, Jessica Jones, Daredevil, Iron Fist and even the Punisher are long-viewed as “street level” characters by Marvel in both the comic books and the cinematic universe. Within the backstory, this means that street-level characters typically protect their local neighborhood, can blend in with the “average” folks and don’t have abilities as powerful as most Avengers do. For writers, this street-level concept can often lead to gritty, personal storylines that often stand apart from the broader, epic stories.

Kevin Feige, Marvel Studios and Netflix clearly realize this and tailor the Netflix series to echo the approach used in comics.

The results have been excellent. Daredevil and Jessica Jones are well-regarded and expectations are high for Luke Cage as well as the upcoming Iron Fist. All of the main characters of these Netflix series will comprise a group known as The Defenders, which is also scheduled to get a series. The Defenders began as a fairly successful comic book series from the 1970’s. Additionally, the approach of the Netflix series appeals to those viewers who often enjoy grittier action-dramas such as Justified or Sons of Anarchy.

As you get ready to binge-watch, here are a few bullet-points about Luke Cage that might help set the stage for a weekend of popcorn and Netflix.

Official Synopsis (link)

Luke Cage is a former gang member who is framed for a crime. In prison, he volunteers for a medical experiment that goes awry, giving him super strength and bulletproof skin. Using his newfound powers, Cage escapes and becomes a hero for hire. His archenemy is Willis Stryker, a former childhood friend from Harlem. The two committed petty crimes together, and both fell for the same woman, Reva Connors, which led to their eventual falling out. It was Stryker who framed Cage for a drug deal that sent him to prison.

What to expect and things to know:

Kickoff is Friday, September 30^th at 3:00am EST
All episodes are named from titles of Gang Starr songs.
An exceptional soundtrack.
Hat-tips to classic Luke Cage characters, stories and images from the comic’s.
Structural similarities to the HBO series, The Wire.
Story elements and arcs that deal with a variety of modern issues.
The Netflix series gives writing credits to original writer Archie Goodwin.

Who to look for:

Alfre Woodard’s as Mariah Stokes – a take on Black Mariah from the comics.
Misty Knight – a NYPD detective in this series, but also long-time paramour of Danny Rand aka Iron Fist.
Cottonmouth Stokes – big bad guy of the series inspired in part by Biggie Smalls.

Who we hope to see:

Colleen Wing, Daughter of the Dragon
Dave “DW” Griffith – theater owner and a good friend of Luke’s in the comic’s.
Jessica Jones!

Netflix Series List & Marvel Studios productions

Daredevil (seasons 1&2 available)
Jessica Jones (season 1 available)
Luke Cage (premiered 9/30/16)
Iron Fist (premieres 2017)
The Defenders
The Punisher

*In the comics, Luke Cage is often referred to as Power-Man. I don’t think that will be the case for this show, but they might weave it in somewhere!

Sweet Christmas! – catchphrase of Luke Cage

Monkeys Fighting Robots Youtube

Lily Collins Stars in New Trailer for ‘Rules Don’t Apply’

Kris Solberg

September 30, 2016

A new trailer for the upcoming ensemble flick Rules Don’t Apply has hit the web. Set against the backdrop of Hollywood in the 1950’s, the film follows Lily Collins (Mirror, Mirror) as she is hired as a studio actress for Howard Hughes’ (played by Warren Beatty) RKO Pictures. Once there, she falls for Frank (Alden Ehrenreich), a determined driver, and they engage in what is described as an unconventional love story about ambition, infatuation, and human connection.

The film will see the long-awaited return of Warren Beatty behind the camera, his first directorial effort since 1998’s Bulworth. Beatty, who has not starred in a movie since 2001’s Town & Country, produced the film, as well as writing the screenplay, adapted from a story he wrote alongside Bo Goldman.

In addition to Beatty, Collins, and Ehrenreich, the film gathers quite the collection of Hollywood heavyweights with Annette Benning, Ed Harris, Martin Sheen, Matthew Broderick, Candice Bergen, Oliver Platt, and Alec Baldwin all making an appearance in the flick.

Set to hit theaters on November 23rd, the film is positioned for a run throughout awards season, with Beatty hoping to earn his 15th competitive Academy Award nomination. His only win came as best director of Reds in 1981, but perhaps he will taste success once more with the release of Rules Don’t Apply.

Monkeys Fighting Robots Youtube

Review: ‘Wacky Raceland’ #4: Red Vegas

Anthony Wendel

September 29, 2016

Our heroes head to the radioactive remains of Las Vegas for a little R&R between races, hoping for a jackpot of ammunition to add to their dwindling supplies. Instead, they arouse the ire of the ganglord Neon Caesar, who’s got an ax to grind with Red. Meanwhile, Muttley and his vehicles are lost in the labyrinthine sewers beneath the streets when the gangs of Vegas unite to eradicate the Racers. Our heroes must go it alone against the combined might of the Caesars, the Pharaohs, the Clowns, and the terrifying Combovers, who have great weapons. Terrific weapons. Really, they have the best weapons.

Writing

Each issue so far of Wacky Raceland has taken the time to look at a different character and explain what makes them tick. This one looks at Red Max, who has so far has only been portrayed as a Nazi with a little else to his character. When a character is a Nazi, they will be saddled with a lot of justifiable hatred, and to truly find them to be sympathizing takes a really good story with a lot of intense emotion behind it. The issue doesn’t have that, and instead barely creates any sense of pity. It also doesn’t really explain why he decided to become a Nazi either, and this is the majority of this issue. Not exactly quality reading. Writer Ken Pontac will have to work on making the readers care about more characters other than Penelope and Dick in future issues.

Artwork

The art by Leonardo Manco again diverges into two different art styles. First is the dark and dirty wasteland of the present and the crisp and the more refined style for the flashback. Unfortunately, there aren’t really as many memorable moments as in previous issues, except for a section which is obviously an attempt to try and pay homage to Mad Max: Fury Road. Of course this whole series is basically a homage to the movie already.

Conclusion

Wacky Raceland has been an interesting read in previous issues, but this is the first one to come along which isn’t at least above average. It leaves the reader to questions how long the formula of “race with a flashback mixed in” will continue. Somehow it feels liked the first major story arc may be needed instead.

Monkeys Fighting Robots Youtube

Review: ‘Miss Peregrine’s Home For Peculiar Children’ Is Clunky

Kaitlyn Booth

September 29, 2016

Title Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children
Director: Tim Burton
Summary: When Jacob discovers clues to a mystery that spans different worlds and times, he finds Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children. But the mystery and danger deepen as he gets to know the residents and learns about their special powers.

There are a lot of things that could be said about Tim Burton, but if there is one thing even his most die hard fans can agree on is that the last several years have not been kind to him. Abysmal failures like Dark Shadows and Alice in Wonderland have left a sour taste in the mouth of those that once loved the mind that brought us Edward Scissorhand. While most of his movies tend to at least make money they have become predictable and boring with the saying ‘that’s exactly what you would expect from Burton’ becoming a common turn of phrase. Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children looks like yet another Burton production with this issue only he was the director. The unique visuals combined with the premise seemed like the perfect harmony that could create a genre classic.

Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children is visually stunning but a clunky story and reliance on cliches does not blend well.

The premise of Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children appears to be a turn on the X-Men only taking the premise even further. While Professor X hides his children in a home Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children hides the children in a literal pocket dimension. This is the logical extreme and the idea is fun. A world that is locked in the same day during World War II gives the movie a very unique look that blends steampunk and time appropriate fashion that the target audience will likely love. What that target audience is is a little harder to pin down. It looks like it could be targeted to younger people but the moment where it is revealed how the bad guys keep human?? was jarring. It is very Burton-like to blend some real horror iconography with this look but it felt a little out of place here.

The world building is the strength of the film but it is also its downfall. A book has 100,000 words to explain a world and build all of its subtle nuances, but a movie only has a short amount of time to explain everything. The unique premise takes far too long to explain and the narrative is bogged down with long bouts of exposition that while they make the world feel more real and interesting stop?? the pacing short. The second act is particularly guilty of this as the movie needs to explain our bad guys and why the need for a pocket dimension like this is even needed. Fortunately most of that exposition is being given by Eva Green who couldn’t be more perfect for this role if she tried.

The thing that can save a movie like this is the look and that is probably why they hired a visionary like Burton in the first place. The look of the movie works and it works very well but the look also makes the more cliched parts stand out even more. The bare bones of the plot are the same ones we’ve seen in every young adult adaptation; a romance that makes little to no sense and moves way too fast, embracing your inner freak, learning ‘normal’ doesn’t exist and a boy becoming a man. We’ve seen all of this done so many times that these two plots don’t fit well together. Instead of taking a premise that is well known, and adding a new coat of paint to make it look new and interesting, they instead are smashing the Burton aesthetic with stories we know way too well and the pieces do not work.

Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children is far from a bad movie and the teens that watch it are probably going to love the look. It looks great but aesthetics and visuals can only go so far if we aren’t invested in the character, and I was not invested.

Monkeys Fighting Robots Youtube

All The Zombie Action On Netflix That You Might Be Missing

Ruben Diaz

September 29, 2016

Since George Romero convinced a bunch of friends and random people to eat raw meat on camera back in the 1960s, the zombie genre has proven un-killable. The mostly shambling dead have featured in countless movies and video games. The genre reached mainstream critical mass a few years ago. But since ‘The Walking Dead’ started its run, the living dead have receded to their usual niche of b-movie madness that goes straight to video. However, based on the number of zombie movies released every year, the genre is nowhere near resting in peace.

Fans of the zombie genre need look no further than the horror genre offerings on Netflix to find all manner of flesh-eating fun.

Zombeavers
I ask you to believe in the power of Zombeavers. The premise is typical horror fare with a ridiculous twist. A group of teenagers goes into the woods for some fun when they’re attacked by undead beavers and more. If you enjoy b-movie horror and things like Tucker and Dale or Lake Placid, then Zombeavers is must-watch. As ridiculous as it is, the humor, tone, and scares are all well-balanced by director Jordan Rubin. There’s also a handful of fun surprises along the way that goes well beyond just beavers.

Zoombies
The animals at a zoo are infected with a zombie virus and wackiness ensues. Everything Zombeavers does right Zoombies does the same old way. Zombeavers has fun with its premise, has characters that are worth a little investment, and some clever scares.Zoombies offers nothing new other than the concept itself and makes the mistake of taking itself too seriously.

JeruZalem
There are three gates on Earth that lead to hell. One is in the ocean. One is in the desert. And one is in … Jerusalem! Dun-Dun-Dun! We learn that in the first minutes of JeruZalem, a zombie movie directed by the Israeli “Paz Brothers.” which sometimes feels more like a tourist promotion video or a fantasy film where Google Glass never runs out of battery and shoots flawless digital video. JeruZalem is a first-person horror movie much like Hardcore Henry with demonic, winged zombies and just about every zombie trope imaginable.

The Lazarus Effect
An outstanding cast that includes Mark Duplass, Olivia Wilde, Donald Glover and Evan Peters feature in a film with a decent premise that is a mostly entertaining sci-fi/horror flick. A team of scientists can bring back the dead. But when their research is bought out by Big Pharma, a tragedy leads one of the scientists to use what he’s learned to get everything he’s lost back. Great intentions at making a more psychological zombie flick fall flat like the dead after a headshot.

Burying the Ex
Joe Dante, the director behind such great flicks like Gremlins and one of my favorites ever Explorers, drives this cinema train right into a thick wall of mediocrity. I’m not one to give much credit to Rotten Tomatoes scores, but at 28% that’s just about right. Burying the Ex stars the late Anton Yelchin along with Ashley Greene and Alexandra Daddario. The film has moments of funny, but they are few and far between. The whole thing reminds me of a late 80s horror-comedy called My Boyfriend’s Back.

Navy SEALs: The Battle For New Orleans
Also known as Navy SEALs vs. Zombies, this one here features, you guessed it, Navy SEALs taking on undead hordes to save New Orleans. The trailer for this movie is a high-octane ride that is more than enough. The movie itself is by-the-books zombie action with a little more firepower added in and a few actors that’ll make you say “Hey, it’s that guy from … oh, what was it?!”

All movies are currently available for streaming on Netflix.

Special thanks to Eddie Beis (Twitter: @Beis003) for the artwork in the main image above.

Monkeys Fighting Robots Youtube

Review: ‘Deepwater Horizon’ Doesn’t Stick The Landing

By
Kaitlyn Booth
-

September 29, 2016

Title: Deepwater Horizon
Director: Peter Berg
Summary: A story set on the offshore drilling rig Deepwater Horizon, which exploded during April 2010 and created the worst oil spill in U.S. history.

The unfortunate reality of being a film critic is that there are times when not much comes out. These lulls between releases are shrinking every year but there are still weeks at a time where the best one can say about the movies being released is ‘forgettable’. This is also a time where studios can drop a movie that they might not have a lot of confidence in to avoid being completely drowned out by summer blockbusters or award movies.

Deepwater Horizon isn’t going to change the world but as a tribute to the lives lost on that day on the gulf it succeeds even if it isn’t very memorable.

Photo Credit: David Lee

The BP oil disaster is an event that the world is going to be talking about for years to come. While the gulf has more or less healed the effects are ones that are going to be felt through the generations. Those reparations are felt the most by the men and women who were there the night the rig caught fire and who lost their lives. When I saw the trailer for Deepwater Horizon I had to wonder if turning this event into a movie was really the right thing to do. It turned out that it is but the movie doesn’t quite know how to end when it comes to it. This movie was made less as a movie talking about the oil spill but more the eleven men who lost their lives that night.

The reason why Deepwater Horizon doesn’t fall completely flat is that focus. While we do see a bird covered in oil at one point the movie doesn’t seem to dwell on that too much. Character do speak about it but the immediate threat is the fire and getting all of the workers to safety. It’s a disaster movie only in this case the disaster is a real event and the people dying were real instead of disaster movie canon fodder. These people are the reason this movie was made and the entire cast does a great job of embodying that from Walberg’s ‘Dad trying to make his way in the world’ to Russell’s ‘boss who will stop at nothing to keep his men safe’ they are all believable in a very real way.

It’s just unfortunate that the movie didn’t know how to end. There are plenty of movies that should have ended earlier either by adding scenes for a sequel that will never come or the need to tap on one more action scene despite the story being clearly over. In the case of Deepwater Horizon once the rig burns down there is an abrupt shift in tone that doesn’t work. The film goes from tense thriller to the ending of a documentary and the juxtaposition didn’t work. The intentions appear to be re-enforcing that human element but that was literally the point of the entire production. It felt unnecessary and tacked on.

Deepwater Horizon appears to be designed to focus on the men and women who survived and died that night and not on the resulting fallout. However, the ending of the production felt the need to reinforce this focus in the least subtle way possible. While the movie accomplished its goal of focusing on those lives lost it should have faded to black five minutes earlier.

Monkeys Fighting Robots Youtube

1...1,1781,1791,180...1,690 Page 1,179 of 1,690