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Film reviews

Hit Man Review

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Director Richard Linklater’s style is displayed in the opening of Hit Man, a one-of-a-kind spy comedy. The setting has both normalcy and many unanswered questions. The film accomplishes its objectives with magnificent misdirection. 

Glen Powell plays Gary Johnson and narrates many segments of the film. He is a professor and a hit man for his local police department. Gary displays a classy personality. His style is presentable but a bit below-average. No one would be able to guess that he does con work on the side because his attitude is presented as book smart over street smart. Gary’s subtle character is how he gets the job done.

Linklater uses character traits of deceit and quirkiness to great benefit in this movie. The role and personality of Powell reminded me of Jack Black’s performance in Linklater’s 2003 classic School of Rock. In both films, the characterization involves someone who is under-qualified to be doing a task and yet they are doing it to their benefit. For Black it was pretending to be a schoolteacher and forming his rock group, and for Powell it is about using fake names to cover his identity and do dirty deeds. Linklater is superb in creating characters who can bring such surprises when the truth about what they do is revealed. 

In Hit Man, a load of revelations and curiosities unfold as part of the backstory of the lead character. The film is innovative withcatchy moments using disguises. Powell plays the role well as aclassic man of mystery who does not hide his shifting personalities.

There are creative moments including scenarios in which Gary has worked during his con work assignments. His assistants are Claudette (played by Reeta), Phil (played by Sanjay Rao), and Jasper (played by Austin Amelio). Gary is the most suited to get tasks accomplished. The writing of the characters’ roles provides personality with confidentiality. They all work within their means, but Gary plays the cards right all the time. The audience will feel that Powell is the mastermind of whatever is to come and will be able to handle most every problem that comes his way.

With Gary having a life as a teacher and a hit man, he starts to see shifts in his thinking as he feels a love for Madison Figueroa Masters (played by Adria Arjona). His love interest impacts his ability to fly below the radar. This element causes the humor to shift which is what works for Linklater, especially in a spy-thriller.

Linklater knows how to effectively establish reputations. Gary’s reputation is on the line when he realizes that Madison may be in danger due to her husband. Are Gary’s feelings getting in the way? What is worth more to Gary? There is a steamy chemistry that tests the limits and boundaries in Hit Man. The lies combined with Gary’s success as a professor, a hit man, and his hidden relationship with Madison all enhance the story. Powell’s role of a two-faced, nice guy makes for mysterious pleasures in Hit Man.

When does the red flag of confidentiality get too risky?Moments of truth unfold when Gary pulls out his gun in public. Slowly many acquaintances come across Gary when he is with Madison as his new mission is to help Madison get her abusive husband out of her life. With that focus, however, a lot is on the line. How low can Gary fly below the radar? Linklater does a magnificent job of portraying the moments of life and chaos. There are unique cliffhangers and unexpected surprises with plenty of enthralling twists in this different yet fun Linklater classic. Three-and-a-half out of four stars for Hit Man.

Film reviews

Inside Out 2 Review

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It’s been nine years since the first Inside Out opened. The first one established a foundation, and this one elevates the experience to a whole new level. Inside Out 2 takes a deeper dive into emotions and all kinds of growth. This film has stellar animation galore. I walked out of the movie feeling mesmerized by the story which deeply connected to my own emotions. A combination of happiness, sadness, loneliness, and anxiousness were all swimming in my head. Inside Out 2 brings out strong feelings of empathy in a beautiful and poetic way.

The voices of the characters are back this time around. Each of them displays the emotions of the human, Riley, whose voice is played by Kensington Tallman. The emotions continue to thrive in this film. They are Joy (voiced by Amy Poehler), Sadness (voiced by Phyllis Smith), Anger (voiced by Lewis Black), Fear (voiced by Tony Hale), Disgust (voiced by Liza Lapira), and Anxiety (voiced by Maya Hawke). These characters are all in their appropriate places for Riley, who is now in her teenage years, and off to Hockey camp. Given Riley is going through puberty, the characters hit some plateaus. There is a new world of challenges which portrayed like pieces of a puzzle which is falling apart.

The themes related to growing up combine into a unique creative adventure that I found exhilarating. There are scenes in which Riley is mentally discouraged as well as new paths she discovers to tackle new feelings. I appreciated the purity in the scenes which effectively portrayed the process of growing up. It made me think of The Toy Story franchise. As the child got older in that franchise, more challenges leading to new adventures came along, and opened even more doors. Joy takes the lead as the hero and navigates her way through various tough issues throughout the film. Anger plays a starring role in some parts and these strong emotions do not always see eye-to-eye.

With Riley being at a hockey camp, I felt the film’s writing was built on a strong foundation that allowed it to soar to newheights. Since Riley is not in one place as much as she was in the first film, she is now in a world with different people and diverse interaction. This gives the characters lots of ways to express their emotions. Riley’s self-esteem is the part that really brings out the positive feelings in Inside Out 2.

Ask yourself how you are feeling. Ask yourself if you are feeling up. Ask yourself if you are feeling down. No matter what emotions you’re feeling there is a wonderful message inside Inside Out 2. I enjoyed thinking about the characters and their feelings. Since audiences already know these feelings have a purpose, the story is very relatable. There are also moments in the film where the characters find themselves in hysterics which adds to the fun. In addition to the laughs, plenty of growth occurs in this invigorating animated film. Three out of four stars for Inside Out 2. 

Film reviews

MoviePass, MovieCrash Review

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This was a concept I lived for and thrived in when it first found its popularity. A membership that allowed me to see as many movies as I wanted to for as low as ten dollars a month. A membership that made going to the movies cost-effective. There is more to the story though. MoviePass, MovieCrash is a documentary that is realistic and speaks the truth of where the flops of the program, company, and membership of MoviePass started to happen. There may have been a volume of growth with the rise of memberships, but it lost its direction in becoming sustainable.

Directed by Muta’Ali Muhammad, MoviePass, MovieCrash dives into the early days of the creation of MoviePass. It then follows its years of rising and falling. Throughout the film, the depths of profits, struggles, and moving parts of the company are revealed to create a portrait of a module that just did not work. With interviews of many insiders including the main founders, Ted Farnsworth and Mitch Lowe, it’s clear to see the dynamics of business and vision went in many directions. The original founders were Stacy Spikes and Hamet Watt, who then passed it down to Farnsworth and Lowe. Their reputation of faith and personality they built the business on did not find common ground. The film is honest along the lines of seeing the plateaus, yet  what definitely spoke was the rising numbers. The increases kept happening while problems kept being put on the backburner.

With conflicts not finding prioritization, MoviePass, MovieCrash hurts in hearing the truth of what many of the workers, fans, and visionaries went through in terms of all the disasters that occurred as a result. One was sponsorship from AMC Theatres who actually despised MoviePass. Another issue was that there were not enough tools to make the membership cards. Finally, there were not enough resources to handle the amount of traffic from incoming customer complaints when issues in cinemas came up for the members of MoviePass.

When they interviewed the fans, the raves and addictions to countless movies were true, but when the errors happened, they made it clear that it felt like a never-ending nightmare. I can relate to this because I had these same problems when I had the membership. Then when AMC A-list came out, I resorted to that, as I was able to get free movies in premium formats. I could get up to 3 free movies a day. MoviePass only allowed one film a day in no premium formats. The cost-effectiveness for amazing movie memories was not there with a MoviePassmembership. There were only additional headaches as the frequent technicalities due to poor management continued and escalated.

MoviePass, MovieCrash created a culture where money and profit always come first. When studios spend millions of dollars in advertisements, it makes sense why MoviePass had all its plateaus. It had nothing much to offer for its audience. A free movie is nice, but did they have the profits to throw in concession items? Did they can add more premium formats? Why were there glitches in the apps with all the summer releases in 2018? MoviePass, MovieCrash depicts the boiling turmoil of making movie moments less enjoyable when it results in problems all around. The minds of Lowe and Farnsworth were the ones that had meaning. They knew what they were doing, but they did not pay attention to the rising problems on the side of actual operations while they were still hitting it big with their memberships. MoviePass, MovieCrash throws in the truth of the frustration to the many people (including myself) and the reasons for all of the suffrage of the membership. 

A riveting documentary that makes the audience think of the business sides of memberships. The  cinema world still must explore ways to put audiences in physical seats. The true catastrophe of the MoviePass membership debacle boils this issue to the bone. It does it in terms of politics, favoritism, corruption, connections, and the finding no satisfaction in the experience. It feels like a truth that the world truly knows already, but its presentation displays the anarchy of it all. Three out of four stars.