New Website Update

I just wrote my review on Christopher Nolan's Dunkirk, but I have a new website! It is cleaner and easy to navigate and the link will be below, so please continue reading my reviews and also continue watching these movies! Thank you so much for spending your own time to read my work!

URL to new site: https://spoonmorej.wixsite.com/backseatreviewer

War for the Planet of the Apes

            When the teaser trailer for War for the Planet of the Apes was released I got goose bumps. I rode that hype-train all the way to the theater and this movie, to put it simply, was not what I thought it would be. I wanted it to be like Mad Max: Fury Road, my favorite action movie of all time, but Matt Reeves, the director, decided to take a different approach. This movie would be the end of the greatest trilogy since The Lord of the Rings, so Reeves knew he had to get it right. People might say Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight trilogy will be better, but because of Heath Ledger’s passing, Nolan had to re-write The Dark Knight Rises and he sadly didn’t have enough time to make a solid ending. Knowing this, Reeves took time on this movie, and his passion was palpable through the way he conducted each scene; he made the movie slow enough to build tension, and the spectacular character development as well as the script helped the execution. How he wrote the screenplay especially deserves applause because it was oozing with depth and themes packed with symbolism. I loved this movie, but I have to say it was not a routine action film. It was clear that the audience in the theater was not ready for this movie; it was slow, bleak, emotional, and dark. I wasn’t ready for it either, every time I wanted a scene to go a certain way, Reeves pulled the rug from under me and did it differently. Now this movie isn’t a total Anti-War sob-fest, it actually has some very heart felt moments and a few laughs sprinkled through the movie to give the audience a time to breathe. These moments come from the addition of some very interesting characters that other directors would never dare to put in their movie, and that’s what made them so special.

            The characters in this movie were amazing. Every single one of them had a purpose and their own developing story that all came closing in on each other at the end. Individually, the characters had depth and made heavy decisions that affected the entire story, but what this movie did so well were the interactions the characters made with each other. “Apes together strong!” was visibly shown throughout because the apes and Caesar are nothing without each other. Time and time again Caesar wants to go on this mission of his alone, but each time he is shown what happens when he leaves his friends and family behind. The spotlight was on him, and Andy Serkis performed like no other, but the ensemble of characters surrounding him showed the conflict both in the world and inside his own head. Maurice, who was quiet, patient, and wise, was the moral compass that helped Caesar not fall into hate, and Rocket, my personal favorite, knew that Caesar felt the weight of his people and that the lives lost through war should not be forgotten. Those two are the most obvious moral arguments that were happening in Caesar’s mind, but the rest I will leave for you to see for yourself, because the complexity of this epic was bold and powerful.

            I wanted to talk about the themes and messages hidden under the skin of this outstanding blockbuster, but I believe I don’t have the skill or authority to dissect it to its full respect. I solely focus on the characters of movies because I understand it to the point of praise and discussion. The themes in this movie were deeper than its character depth due to its rich symbolism and large ideas that were executed so well to the point where they didn’t take control of the story. Some were easy to spot, and others were subtle but present enough to still have impact. This movie was not like Mad Max: Fury Road because that movie was made to be very simple and at least serve to be eye candy for enjoyment, War for the Planet of the Apes deserves personal conversation as well as attention to what it is trying to say. This movie deserves all the praise it gets, from its themes, to its breathtaking CGI, and to its vibrant characters. Not only was it the best movie I had seen all summer, but also the best end to a trilogy since the Return of the King, and that earns a standing ovation.

Also, this is the third installment of a very powerful trilogy that heavily relies on its predecessors, so if you want to go and see this movie, I recommend you watch the first two (Rise of the Planet of the Apes, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes) before you go. They aren’t as big or as deep as this one, but they are equally powerful and the path of Caesar’s revolution is enticing.

Story Rating: 9.5/10

Character Rating: 10/10

Spider-Man: Homecoming

            There are several big-name critics out there that say superhero movies are too formulaic and shallow to be good. There is some merit to their argument, but really it’s their overflowing ego getting in the way. I was subject to this, I believed Spider-Man: Homecoming would be passably light hearted and fun with no depth of character or struggle; I’m happy to say that I was very surprised. Marvel and 20^th Century Fox have both realized that the superhero genre is not stable on its own, and recently with Deadpool being a comedy, Logan being a western, and Spider-Man: Homecoming being a coming-of-age teen movie (which are my three favorite genres), I think they have found out how to jump that hurdle.

            Spider-Man: Homecoming was a very enjoyable and comedic movie with fleshed out characters that never dragged the story down. Some jokes seemed a little off in scenes, but I found myself openly laughing throughout, and the characters were never broken when the script fell flat. Michael Keaton’s character was a good antagonist that wasn’t shoe horned in to make a conflict, and his motive was grounded in a way that made him feel real. Tom Holland was great; his performance never strayed and was empowering to watch. Out of all the superheroes in this Marvel hodge-podge of a universe, I can only relate to Spider-Man on a personal level. He was funny, charming, witty, resourceful, and the way the movie showed his every day life made me grinning from ear to ear. The supporting characters were more than just a few quick lines of comedy; every person had an arc and goal that wasn’t blurted out through exposition. Ned (Jacob Batalon) was a riot. He had the best jokes in the movie, and he was the voice of reason to Peter Parker’s reckless living. Jon Favreau, who I wish directed this movie, was just an actor, and he made sure the audience enjoyed it. He had the flattest character, but he still had moments where he shined.

Overall I think it was the acting and writing that made this movie so enjoyable; the directing was average (especially after I had just seen an Edgar Wright movie) and I was a little upset by how simple the shots were. The one thing the director made special was letting the camera roll. There were very long takes in the movie and that made the actors fill the room with their brilliance and gave them the time to make their characters feel real. For a superhero movie, this was a great and refreshing experience. It had a great ending, which I cannot say about Wonder Woman, and Tom Holland was able to stand apart from the crowd even when Michael Keaton was present. I highly recommend seeing this movie, but make sure to save room on your calendar for War for the Planet of the Apes next week. Oh God I’m so excited!

Story Rating: 8/10

Character Rating: 8/10

Baby Driver

            This movie (hopefully) will start a streak of amazing movies for this summer. A Ghost Story and Spiderman: Homecoming are next week, and War for the Planet of the Apes is the week after that (Hell yes for that last one.) Followed by Dunkirk drowning Valerian and the City of Thousand Planets in the box office, fingers crossed.

            I went this morning to see Baby Driver and thoroughly enjoyed myself; the driving was awesome, and the music matched the action like a pair of Siamese twins holding hands. The actors also stood out, if a movie comes out with Kevin Spacey, Jamie Fox, and Jon Hamm you know it’s going to be an experience. Jon Bernthal was also great; he made sure that the audience remembered him even though his appearance was brief. Ansel Elgort, the main actor that played Baby, was very surprising to me, and I look forward to seeing him in future works (Except for Divergent series). All the acting, action, cinematography, directing, and music mixing with sound editing was spectacular, but what held the movie back was the one thing I focus on: Characters. Baby as a character was great, no doubt about it, but other characters, some of the bank robbers, were more of caricatures too busy being unique and looking cool to have organic emotions. The bank robbers that eluded this problem were Jon Hamm’s Buddy, and Jamie Fox’s Bats; both of them had a true moment with Baby that revealed to him the underbelly and consequences of the life he’s living as a get away driver. Now, it’s true that the story was on the focus of Baby’s perspective, and maybe that’s how he sees those bank robbers: cartoons with big guns and bigger mouths, but the one character that didn’t completely sell me was his girlfriend, the key element of the story's conflict.

            She listened to music and looked cute. Great, that started a relationship, but it didn't evolve into anything more. Baby clearly had feelings for her and she the same, but the audience didn't get the connection as much. The girlfriend is the only lacking part of the movie, and she wasn’t even that bad. She was the reason why he wanted out of the business and the movie showed that visibly. She had moments where she proved she’s not a ‘damsel in distress’ either, but sometimes she seemed very helpless and stood in the background. Overall, I think Edgar Wright wanted his movie to be more than a ‘getaway driver wants out’ kind of movie, and he excels at that in his own unique style, so I was fine with him not putting his maximum effort on having a cute relationship between Oscar-worthy, fleshed-out characters. Not every movie needs award winning character development, sometimes the thrill of the action and plot are good enough to be enjoyable. This movie proved that.

Story Rating: 9/10

Character Rating: 7/10

The Prestige

            The Prestige was a movie that I thought was great when I saw it, but then it continued to stick with me even after I watched more classic movies. It’s a great example of why stories depend on the characters and their goals; the entire film follows two magicians and their obsession towards the other. They sacrifice everything so that they could prove to be the best, and the distance they go is farther than any average character. The other interesting part is that there is no true antagonist, both characters have triumphant moments as they succeed, and sympathetic moments when they fail. I personally connected to Hugh Jackman’s character, Robert Angier, even after he succumbs to what leads to his downfall. Only at the end does Christian Bale’s character, Alfred Borden, show his true sacrifice, and that made me wonder why the perspective of the film was in favor of Robert Angier. The reason might be to raise that very question, and prove my favorite line near the end:

            “But if you could fool them, even for a second, you could make them wonder. Then you got to see something very special… it was the look on their faces.”

Film is for entertainment, The Prestige excels at what most movies fail, to have a Prestige, and that is why this movie is so memorable.

Story Rating: 9/10

Character Rating: 9/10

The Kings of Summer

            I haven’t reviewed in months, sorry about that, but nothing too interesting has come out since the New Year, except A Monster Calls, so check that out. There are some interesting movies coming at the end of the week, and the week after that, so I’m deciding to start before hand with one of my favorite movies:

The Kings of Summer.

            This movie is a coming of age story about two high schoolers wanting to get away from their obnoxious parents. Joe (Nick Robinson) is a freshman in high school that just ended the year and is looking forward to the summer. His Dad (Nick Offerman) is a huge jerk to Joe because they don’t really see eye to eye. Joe’s friend, Patrick (Gabriel Basso), is a wrestler with a leg brace, and his parents breathe down his neck about everything. His mom is like the crazy aunt of the family, but as a mom, and his dad is a stubborn and quiet guy that always agrees with his wife. And with this movie’s honesty, two teenagers with annoying parents only point to trouble. Joe is the mastermind between Patrick and him. He finds a place in the woods and decides to build a house to hide from his Dad. Later on Patrick agrees and they run away from their homes. Another teenager joins in on the fun, Biaggio (Moises Arias) and he is one of the weirdest characters I have seen in a movie. I don’t know how the writers came up with some of his lines, but he stands apart from the rest of the phenomenal actors.

This story is so well directed and written, and the characters are vibrantly shown with passion in every line. Simplicity was key in making this movie. The climax was simple and realistic, and the struggle was very relatable and fleshed out. Time and time again we are reminded what Joe, Patrick, and Biaggio give up in order to live in the wild, and we are also reminded why they left the life they were living. In the end, every character has realized the problems of their relationships and is trying to figure everything out. There is no concrete “ok, that’s settled and we can forget about it.” The solution is still growing after the credits roll, and not every arc is settled redeemably. This movie was hilarious, touching, and outstanding. It deserves a 10/10 respectfully, and I wish there were more movies like it.

P.S. the same director is making the new King Kong movie, which I’m not excited about, but fingers crossed. I’m trying to stay hopeful, but I wish Jordan Vogt-Roberts, the director, had stayed in the simple films.