Quick Reviews, Winter 2018 Part 1: The Ballad of Buster Scruggs, Creed II, Can You Ever Forgive Me?, Boy Erased, Robin Hood

The Ballad of Buster Scruggs

The Ballad of Buster Scruggs (2018): An anthology film comprised of six stories, each dealing with a different aspect of life in the Old West.

It's rather difficult for a 6-part anthology to be effective. But if anyone could do it, it would be Joel and Ethan Coen. And execute, they do. This film is the perfect made-for-Netflix film. If one of the stories doesn't land, you can either fast forward through it on entertain yourself with your phone or whatever else is close by your couch. Each story revolves around a certain human virtue/vice, including greed, arrogance,  and bravery. (To name a few) Most are effective, but a few of them didn't do it for me. But again: that's where the beauty of this being on Netflix came into play, as I had no trouble finding ways to entertain myself during Impresario's (Liam Neeson) segment, and Cowboy's (James Franco) segment. On that note, the fact that James Franco is even in this is frustrating, given he fell on the wrong side of the #MeToo movement. Not only is it frustrating, but it's also a head-scratching decision as Franco definitely feels miscast. He certainly was an unorthodox cowboy, and my predisposition to him in real life affected my judgement, but I just was not a fan of him in this role. Liam Neeson was the same way. That said, the stories that did land hit it out of the park. Led by Alice Longabaugh (Zoe Kazan) and the Prospector, (Tom Waits) these segments hooked me almost instantly. The Prospector segment in particular was gripping  and emotionally powerful. The story opens with a 5+ minute silent section reminiscent of the opening of There Will Be Blood, and it leads to what is undoubtedly the best moment of the entire film. I also think that, in terms of accessibility, this is as good an entry as any to give the Coen brothers a go if you haven't seen any of their films outside of something like No Country for Old Men. While a few of the stories are heavy in Coen-isms (particularly the Ballad of Buster Scruggs [Tim Blake Nelson] itself) the more gripping stories are also the ones that don't feel riddled with their footprint. In short, there's something here for everyone, and given that you can watch it from the comfort of your couch right now, there's no reason not to take a chance on it, regardless of your pre-existing feelings on the Coen Brothers. Don't miss it!

My Number: 8/10

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Creed II

Creed II (2018): Under the tutelage of Rocky Balboa, light heavyweight contender Adonis Creed faces off against Viktor Drago, son of Ivan Drago.

Anyone who knows me knows I am a sucker for boxing movies. They all follow a similar formula, but that formula gets right at my heart strings. Creed II is no exception. It does play out exactly how you expect it to, but the journey is still a blast. That said, the similarities between Creed II and Rocky IV are eerie, to the point that they are almost distracting. I'm all for paying homage to past works, but when your movie not only follows the path of a previous film, but reminds us of the fact that it's going down the same path..... that's a little much. That said, for a boxing movie there's not a whole lot of boxing in it, and as it went on I found myself surprisingly ok with that. This is mostly thanks to the fantastic development of Adonis Creed, Bianca, and Rocky. (Played by Michael B. Jordan, Tessa Thompson, and Stallone, respectively.) They each have rather compelling character arcs and all have a wonderful rapport with each other. I also really liked the fact that we got a good amount of development between the "villains" of the story, Ivan and Viktor Drago. (Dolph Lundgren and Florian Munteanu) While sadly there isn't much of a payoff with these two, the fact that we got to see a more human side of one of the quintessential characters from the 80s and his son is pretty nice. I also have to point to some of the training montages here as they are probably the best I've ever seen in a boxing movie. Modern, adrenaline pumping training sequences that (almost) even make me want to go the gym and get pumped. Almost. Also, if you haven't seen the first Creed, don't let that stop you from seeing the sequel, as director Steven Caple Jr. and writers Juel Taylor/Sylvester Stallone do a good job of making this film accessible for everyone. And thanks to some of  the engaging character development, I think it's pretty accessible even for people that aren't usually a fan of the boxing genre. While it is a slow burn, and the similarities to Rocky IV are very distracting at times, and some of the fire of the first Creed is admittedly gone, I still had a blast watching yet another fun boxing movie.

My Number: 7/10

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Can You Ever Forgive Me?

Can You Ever Forgive Me? (2018): When Lee Israel falls out of step with current tastes, she turns her art form to deception. 

How do you sympathize with a character as unlikable as Lee Israel? That was the dilemma Melissa McCarthy had to grapple with portraying the despicable Israel, and to say she nails it is something of an understatement. No doubt one of the best performances of the year so far, Melissa McCarthy makes a rare appearance outside the comedy genre and puts in one of the best performances of her career. Whether it's Oscar-worthy remains to be seen, but I will be rooting for her. She does a great job grounding Lee Israel and never tries to screen-chew or do anything that felt like a typical Melissa McCarthy-ism. Honestly, the best thing about this performance may be exactly why it doesn't receive a nomination: the performance is so quiet and so natural that it doesn't bring much attention to itself. There's hardly ever a moment where Melissa McCarthy has to "act," whether it be via delivering a memorable monologue or a big emotional moment or something of the sort. But there's no doubt I quickly lost site of Melissa McCarthy and only saw Lee Israel, which is tough to do for someone of McCarthy's stature. Also, shoutout to Richard E. Grant, who is SO GOOD as Jack Hock. For as subdued as Israel is, Hock is the exact opposite: an eccentric and unpredictable gay man who befriends Israel and brings his own problems to the table in the process. Their dynamics are impeccable and a ton of fun to watch. The events of this film are also engaging and fun to watch unfold, though the overall message was a little muddy to me. I don't know, Lee Israel is definitely an engaging character, and I was somewhat sympathetic to her, but the problem faced here of "making a vile human being likable" is a tough one. But, there's more than enough here between the performances of McCarthy / Grant.

​My Number: 7.5/10

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Boy Erased

Boy Erased (2018): The son of a Baptist preacher is forced to participate in a church-supported gay conversion program after being forcibly outed to his parents.

I'm pretty surprised to find myself saying this: I was not very moved emotionally by this film. Don't get me wrong: this is a good film with an engaging story and phenomenal acting from everyone involved, particularly Lucas Hedges and Russell Crowe. Director/writer Joel Edgerton (who also plays a crucial role in the film) has been honing his craft in the director's chair through the years with some shorts and 2015's highly underrated The Gift and the craft here is outstanding. But.....I still wasn't emotionally moved by this film. Why? I think this film, like Beautiful Boy before it, suffers from being overly pretentious. It is trying to hard to be an "important" film that is supposed to be a heavy-handed "for your consideration" Oscar picture. While it's not quite as overtly pretentious as Beautiful Boy was, and it's not asking you to sympathize with someone in the upper .01%, it does still hold this film back from the greatness it could have achieved. That said, it is a good film. Lucas Hedges can do no wrong right now, and he provides the depth this character needs. He also plays off the other actors in this film very well, most notably Russell Crowe. The scenes between these two actors are easily the best scenes of the film, and (almost) worth the cost of admission alone. There's one scene in particular towards the end that was clearly meant to be emotionally devastating, and while I heard many in the theater responding the way the film wanted you to respond, it still failed to move me the way I expected it. I think another problem here is that the film is trying so hard to play you like a fiddle. As if someone is standing there with cue cards telling you how to respond in any given moment. But it's still a masterfully executed film, with a much more relatable story and tremendous acting. If only it didn't feel as pretentious as it does.

My Number: 6.5/10

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Robin Hood

Robin Hood (2018): A war-hardened Crusader and his Moorish commander mount an audacious revolt against the corrupt English crown in a thrilling action-adventure packed with gritty battlefield exploits, mind-blowing fight choreography, and a timeless romance.

Wow that is a ridiculous IMDB description. But, you know what I like? Mindless popcorn flicks. And, you know what this movie is? An unabashed, unashamed, mindless popcorn flick. Don't get me wrong: this movie is ridiculous and stupid. But, it fully embraces its ridiculousness and has as much fun with itself as it can during its action sequences. That said, when the film does stop to take a breath, the scenes are pretty hard-to-watch. Robin Hood (Taron Edgerton) and Marian (Eve Hewson) are pretty good together, but that writing is nothing short of atrocious. And Ben Mendelsohn is given nothing to do. And why are we trying to make Jamie Dornan a thing? Please, stop trying to make Jamie Dornan a thing. I never thought the day would come where I would enjoy a film but have no desire to see its sequel because of who they go all-in on, but they want to go all-in on Jamie Dornan if they do make a sequel so.....hard pass. But again, I had fun watching this film. Because who doesn't want to see slow motion action sequences with bow and arrows? Who doesn't want to see a one-armed Jamie Foxx (terribly inconsistent accent and all) take on a whole legion of bad guys? Yes, this movie is the definition of so-bad-it's-good, but it doesn't change the fact that it's so-bad-it's-good. And with the charming and charismatic Taron Edgerton leading the way in the lead role? With pulse-pounding training montages and action setpieces that let you actually see the action? What's not to love? In short, do not go into this with high expectations. But if you go in just looking for a good time with some mindless action and fun? There's enough here to keep you entertained for two hours. Even if you do find yourself laughing at the movie on multiple occasions. 

My Number: 4/10