Black Widow Review

Black Widow

Dir: Cate Shortland

Starring: Scarlett Johansson, Florence Pugh, David Harbour, Rachel Weisz, Ray Winstone, and O.T. Fagbenle

2 hr 13 min

 

In the Marvel Universe, we've seen a teenage web-slinger, an ancient god with a mythic hammer, a millionaire with a technologically advanced suit of armor, and a super-soldier whose strength and speed are beyond any other human. Finding a normal human amidst these superhumans is always interesting, especially one that can hold its own without gamma-ray modification, radioactive spider bite powers, or advanced machinery. 

 

Natasha Romanoff, alternatively known as Black Widow, is a talented spy and deadly assassin. She was trained from childhood in a top-secret Russian training program known as the "Red Room," a program that takes young women and turns them into elite assassins known as "Black Widows." She eventually abandoned the group and joined The Avengers. Natasha is one of those humans who stands toe-to-toe with superheroes, often using her cunning intelligence and lethal hand-to-hand combat skills to match the super abilities of her counterparts. 

 

Natasha's story within the Marvel Cinematic Universe is a sad one. Often her character was relegated to simplistic supportive roles where she was primarily used as a feminine object. The lone female in a group of men would show up to save one of the other characters with her spy skills, calm the Hulk with a lullaby, or fly the Avengers plane from one adventure to another. This all led to her ultimate sacrifice in 2018's "Avengers: Endgame," a moment for the character that could have been monumental for her complete story but ultimately felt tone-deaf within the story. 

 

Black Widow, directed by Cate Shortland, provides the back story for Natasha. It explores her childhood within a deep operative spy family living in America, the dark roots of her training program with the Red Room, and minor character pieces that provide context for her role as an Avenger. The introduction is interesting and exciting, but the push to stay within the formula crafted by the Marvel Cinematic Universe eventually overshadows the exciting parts that begin this story. 

 

 The film begins with a young Natasha (Ever Anderson) living in a small town. Her mother (Rachel Weisz) sets the table for dinner with her younger sister Yelena (Violet McGraw). Natasha's father (David Harbour) returns from work; he looks distracted upon arrival and then nervous once a mysterious phone call disrupts dinner. The family immediately abandons their home, driving aggressively through their quaint town while streets close around them with the sight of flashing lights. Quickly, they are followed by people shooting guns and narrowly escape. Natasha's family is revealed as a Russian spy operation, immediately after running this mission, the family is separated, and Natasha and her sister are sent away. 

 

In these initial moments, Black Widow interestingly establishes its story, showing a group of trained spies trying to detach from the emotions that compose a family. The kids do a great job of interacting with the adults in these early scenes. Their emotion for the family is felt deeply, while the adults have grown to view these interactions, and this family, as a mission. 

 

Black Widow transitions into adulthood for Natasha (Scarlett Johansson), now an Avenger and international superstar of sorts, and Yelena (Florence Pugh), now with a mind-controlling group of assassins. Scarlett Johansson has played this role many times. Yet, provided with her own singular story aside from the supporting role provided in other films, Johansson shines throughout this film. Add Florence Pugh, who is excellent in everything she does, and the chemistry between the two assassins is humorous and heartfelt. Pugh wholly owns the role of Yelena; whether mocking her sister's combat moves or taking control of her emotions during a family dinner, she is a great addition. 

 

Black Widow works great until it feels the need to push the Marvel formulaic measures into the forefront. Once the dynamic family story ends and the human element for these characters turns into a story about global control using mind-altered assassins under the management of a bad guy named Dreykov (Ray Winstone), who ultimately doesn't work for the story, the film crumbles apart. And when the story falls out of the sky in a blaze of flames, the abandoned potential to make a compelling story for this overlooked Marvel character turns to ashes. 

 

The cast and a few of the early action scenes, which stay in the realm of spy film espionage action, provide Black Widow with enough entertainment to keep things interesting. Still, it's hard not to imagine something better for Marvel's Black Widow.  

 

Monte's Rating

2.50 out of 5.00

Avengers: Endgame Review

Avengers: Endgame

Director:Anthony Russo and Joe Russo

Starring:Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth, Scarlett Johansson, Jeremy Renner, Mark Ruffalo, Brie Larson, Don Cheadle, Karen Gillan, Bradley Cooper, Tessa Thompson, Paul Rudd, and Josh Brolin

How do you say goodbye? It’s not a question we often think about in our everyday lives, but in cinema it’s a theme that is often explored, sometimes with intense emotion and depth of character. Remember Andy saying goodbye to his toys in “Toy Story 3”, the cowboy riding into the sunset in “Shane”, or the Paris scene in “Casablanca”; saying goodbye is hard, emotional, and sometimes complicated.

Almost one year ago, comic book movie fans were left stunned as 10 years of the Marvel Cinematic Universe converged and ended with a question mark for the fates of their favorite superheroes in “Avengers: Infinity War”. It was a cinematic event, one of those pop culture happenings that people will recount in the future when asked when and where they watched the movie. 

Now, the culmination of a film world, which took 11 years and spawned 22 films, prepares for a goodbye of sorts with “Avengers: Endgame”, an epic cinematic event that does it best to wrap up one long story with charming humor, an emotional heart, and cheer-worthy heroics. 

The Avengers have been wounded. With one snap of his titanic fingers, Thanos (Josh Brolin) destroyed half of all humanity. Very soon after this catastrophic event, Captain America (Chris Evans), War Machine (Don Cheadle), Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson), and Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo) are left scrambling for answers and on a quest to find Thanos to exact some revenge. Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) and Nebula (Karen Gillan) are stranded in the depths of space, left starving and running out of air. The how and why of everything else after this introduction will be left spoiler-free. 

The term “fan service” is often thrown around in conversations concerning influential films in pop culture. For those who may be worried about Marvel not committing towards giving fans everything they want with “Avengers: Endgame”, you have absolutely nothing to worry about. “Endgame” delivers 11 years’ worth of fan service throughout the course of the massive 3-hour long runtime, paying homage to the characters and films that have led towards this monumental culmination of heroics. 

The first hour of the film is near perfect. Examining the relationships between our heroes but also the limited grasp they have with the normal world around them, that world where they can establish a sense of normalcy, and the joys associated, beyond the powers that have come to define them. It’s opportunity for these actors to shine, to display the complicated emotions their characters have with themes of duty, servitude, and selflessness. 

Robert Downey Jr., who has emotionally morphed throughout the journey as Ironman, and Chris Evans, who brings more insight than expected into a character who remains the steadfast compass of honorability for the Avengers, each shine bright in this early portion of the film. These two characters carry the heart of the story, and have throughout the course of these films. “Ironman”, with Downey’s foundation-setting performance, is still one of the best films of the entire franchise. One of the highlights of “Endgame” is watching Downey portray Tony Stark. 

The second hour of the film is where much of the fan service takes over, unfortunately in some negative ways. “Endgame” develops a dense maze of plot devices, some that don’t always make the most sense, spanning over the course of the 11-year history of these stories. It’s overly convoluted, often silly in both humorous and puzzling ways, but its focus is clearly set on the fans that have taken into this journey for so many years. If so much passion and heart weren’t dedicated throughout the entire film, with character development specifically, this centerpiece narrative would unravel the first act completely; it’s a compliment to the skill from directors Anthony and Joe Russo that they have weaved this immense story so well. 

Chris Hemsworth, who’s Thor has changed from a humdrum Shakespearean prototype into a witty and arrogant college jock of sorts, and Mark Ruffalo, who has always supplied a charm to the portrayal of the big green Hulk, are provided some scene stealing moments during this middle piece. These two characters compose most of the humor for “Endgame”. These Marvel films have established the value of having humor within the narrative, it helps when watching a grown man turn into a massive angry monster or listening to someone call themselves the “god of thunder”. 

The finale returns to form, mostly accomplishing the challenging feat of tying everything back together, offering some of the brightest moments for our heroes to do what they do best, and giving fans exactly what they have waited for…a fitting goodbye to 11-years of humor, heart, and heroics that have come to define the Avengers and the Marvel Cinematic Universe. 

Where do we go from here? I’m sure Marvel already has the next 11-years planned. 

Monte’s Rating

3.75 out of 5.00

The Jungle Book Review

The Jungle Book

Dir: Jon Favreau

Starring: Neel Sethi, Bill Murray, Ben Kingsley, Lupita Nyong’o, Christopher Walken, Idris Elba, and Scarlett Johansson

The Disney film that played almost consistently throughout my childhood was “The Jungle Book”. The Walt Disney produced animated film was a staple of my childhood, a film that still finds considerable viewings in my home with my family today.  Director Jon Favreau, who is partly responsible for the resurgence of Marvel superhero films from his fantastic vision for “Ironman”, tackles the story of Mowgli the man-cub from the Rudyard Kipling novel. It’s hard trying to update these classic animated tales from Disney’s early days, some seem to miss that “magic” quality that makes these films so formidable in the memories of people who grew up with them. This version of “The Jungle Book” I am happy to inform is impressive; a beautifully computer rendered film with a standout performance from young star Neel Sethi, Mr. Favreau has successfully crafted a magical jungle story.

Mowgli (Neel Sethi) has been raised in the jungle since he was young child, protected by a panther named Bagheera (Ben Kingsley) and pack of wolves that have taken the young man-cub into their company. Raksha (Lupita Nyong’o) is Mowgli’s wolf mother, she is tender and caring and treats Mowgli with the same amount of love as she does her own wolf cubs. Mowgli is curious about the jungle and the animals that live within, however his curiosity is reflected dangerously by a tiger named Shere Khan (Idris Elba) who threatens anyone who stands in the way of him and Mowgli.

Transferring this animated film with talking animals into a medium that is not a traditional cartoon is a challenge, however with the help of technology Mr. Favreau’s film comes to striking photo-realistic life. Even though moments are broken with moving animal mouths that have human voices coming out of them, it rarely distracts because the film correlates many of the qualities those who have come to love this cartoon with the film. From the opening moments that introduce the film with the original 1967 theme intact, to the beloved sing-a-long songs that still make an appearance, to the cartoon playfulness that should come with a film based off a story with talking animals; everything seems to be treading lightly and respectfully on the original Disney tale.

The voice work is a great combination of familiar voices. Bill Murray is the most recognizable in the role of the laidback bear Baloo. Mr. Murray’s usual comic flare and style are evident throughout the composition of the character. Ben Kingsley fits perfectly with the temperament of Bagherra the panther. Christopher Walken sounds as good, if not better, as the great ape King Louie. Scarlett Johansson also fits perfectly as the soothing serpent Kaa. The best of these performances, combined with the fantastic effects, is Lupita Nyong’o as Mowgli’s mother Raksha who in one touching moment tells Mowgli that he will always be loved wherever he goes. The star of the film, amidst all these famous names, is newcomer Neel Sethi as Mowgli. Young Mr. Sethi, performing mostly against a CGI capture, provides emotion and passion as the maturing Mowgli.

This version of the “The Jungle Book” provides more drama, which means some scenes may be a little more intimidating for younger viewers. However, this shouldn’t keep you from bringing the family to watch this film. It captures enough of the familiar qualities to evoke those childhood memories for those who grew up with the cartoon and enough movie magic moments that will create new memories for young people seeing this story for the first time.

Monte’s Rating

4.00 out of 5.00

Hail, Caesar! Review

Hail, Caesar!

Dir: Joel and Ethan Coen

Starring: Josh Brolin, George Clooney, Alden Ehrenreich, Ralph Fiennes, Scarlett Johansson, Channing Tatum, Jonah Hill, Tilda Swinton, Frances McDormand, Allison Pill, and Fisher Stevens

Universal Pictures

105 Minutes

The Coen Brothers film catalog is a mix of stories of people searching and struggling to find their place and purpose in this world. Whether the opportunity of two gym employees to escape the restrictions of their lives in “Burn After Reading” or the decision of a married couple to steal a child to finally make their family dreams come true in “Raising Arizona”, it’s easy to see that these two directors like to watch their conflicted characters trudge through the cruel decisions and landscapes of life. And there is arguably none more cruel an environment than the journey through Hollywood, a character on its own and skewered once already by the artistic siblings in their film “Barton Fink”. “Hail, Caesar!” falls in the same place as the films mentioned already, a none-to-serious measure of wit and style that cleverly pokes fun of the Hollywood system while providing some memorable characters to walk through the fire and flames on their own journey.

Eddie Mannix (Josh Brolin) is a film studio executive working in Hollywood in the 1950’s. Eddie’s job with Capitol Pictures is maintaining film schedules and working with the talent for the numerous productions operating simultaneous at the studio, but his primary job is making problems disappear before they happen. On this particular day in the life of Eddie Mannix his headaches come one right after another, like preventing scandals from making their appearance on the front page of the gossip column, keeping directors happy and unaware with their production concerns, or finding kidnapped star Baird Whitlock (George Clooney) before the their expensive religious epic crumbles.

The Coen Brothers build an impressive aesthetic quality here, commanding an atmosphere that feels and operates like a vintage Hollywood production complete with a variety of genres on display in the 1950’s. There is a highly choreographed water acrobatics scene featuring Scarlett Johansson, a strutting horse and singing cowboy moment with a scene stealing Alden Ehrenreich, and a big budget epic in the vein of “Ben-Hur” featuring George Clooney in full sword and sandal attire. But most memorable is a dancing sailor number featuring the talents of Channing Tatum. These are all amusing scenes that just sort of happen throughout the film, it’s not surprising though considering the Coen Brothers penchant for randomness. The cast is impeccable here, most playing their moments with a quirky seriousness that completely works for the film.

The narrative operates with many moving parts, loosely holding focus on a primary theme while feeling frequently like a bunch of short stories strung together with characters vying for their small piece of screen time. While this may not be too far off from the early Hollywood style of filmmaking, here it makes the film function more sporadic than coherent. Still, it’s strange that throughout a majority of the film this clutter of storylines never seems to play as distracting but instead composes a sly playfulness and off kilter comedic quality that showcases the motion-picture industry with all its self-imposed prestige and self-inflicted flaws. The primary story, a kidnapping plot, brings about a mysterious organization called “The Future” which allows the Coen Brothers opportunity to find their unorthodox stride late in the film.

The film belongs to Josh Brolin who always seems at his best and most comfortable in the care of the Coen Brothers. His character Eddie Mannix again falls in line with the theme of characters trying to find their place and purpose in this world, as he must choose between what is easy and what is right. It’s a simple premise played on multiple levels with numerous characters amidst an exercise of style and humor. “Hail, Caesar!” is a seemingly unrestrained effort from two of cinemas most unique voices.

Monte’s Rating

3.75 out of 5.00

Avengers: Age of Ultron Review

Avengers: Age of Ultron

Dir: Joss Whedon

Starring: Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth, Scarlett Johansson, Mark Ruffalo, Jeremy Renner, Samuel L. Jackson, Elizabeth Olsen, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Cobie Smulders, Paul Bettany, and James Spader

The Marvel cinematic universe continues to grow. A comic-book fan’s dream is being shaped and molded into a collection of films that will continue well into the future. The team of The Avengers returns, led again on creative fronts by Joss Whedon, and the result is as expected, the film is an action-packed, clever and funny summer blockbuster.  With added heroes and bigger baddies, the film bursts at the seams with characters and exhausting and exhilarating action. While the thrill of seeing all these heroes on screen together wears off after a few scenes, Whedon adds his patented touches and makes the cluttered narrative connect and the characters shine bright throughout. Still, where the first Avengers film seemed to hit on many notes, “Avengers: Age of Ultron” misses in some places.

The film begins with The Avengers assembled and fighting together against the last of Hydra’s forces. Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.), Captain America (Chris Evans), Thor (Chris Hemsworth), Hulk (Mark Ruffalo), Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) and Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner) are back and ready. The scientists are working on a secret project that gets foiled by the Avengers but not before two genetically altered twins, Quicksilver (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) and Scarlett Witch (Elizabeth Olsen), plant a seed in the mind of Tony Stark. The twins have a past tarnished by Stark and the weapons his company employed before he became Ironman. Stark has an idea to build a safety net A.I. program that takes charge of threats before harm befalls humanity, the program is called Ultron. After a night of celebration The Avengers meet Ultron (voiced by James Spader), embedded into one of Stark’s assisting robots, who threatens the death of The Avengers and ultimately the world.

Joss Whedon has this wonderful quality of building characters with genuine personality and emotion. Though with so many characters battling for quality time on the screen, some of the characters are left with fleeting moments of minor worth. Though the heroes that are given time are exceptionally composed. Hawkeye is given a much-needed backstory that humanizes the film by making him the character envied because of his personal life, white picket fence and all. We also see Hulk and Black Widow battle the turmoil of a budding relationship, both willing but reluctant because of what their past has produced and what their futures hold. This human quality is provided to all The Avengers but some aren’t given this kind of specific care. Still, you can feel Whedon’s familiar touch throughout the narrative; his humor and sensitivity make the breaks in action have substance, like a scene where the witty banter to challenge the worthiness to lift Thor’s hammer is immediately disrupted by a life threatening situation. In this moment, and many others throughout, Whedon is in control.

Unfortunately the clutter of new characters disrupts some of the tone in the final act. A character is forcefully introduced and awkwardly placed in the middle of the chemistry of the team that just enlisted Quicksilver and Scarlett Witch minutes before. The finale feels very much like the first film, substituting alien for robotic hordes. The narrative also makes leaps that are somewhat disjointed in order to wrap things up and prepare for the future of the franchise. Still, in the capable hands of Whedon and the cast, all who clearly have a firm grasp on the characters, these flaws feel so minor it’s very easy to overlook and just sit back and enjoy the delightful ride.

“Avengers: Age of Ultron” is an entertaining film amidst some minor complaints. Whedon evokes some interesting sentiments about heroes and the extent of their roles both personally and in times of conflict. While the villain Ultron isn’t as memorable as Loki in the first film, Whedon still composes the film with wonderful moments that will undoubtedly satisfy. “Avengers: Age of Ultron” may not be as good as the first film but it doesn’t hurt the entertainment factor.  

Monte’s Rating

3.75 out of 5.00