Sorry to Bother You (2018) directed by Boots Riley

Sorry to Bother You has been called "wildly inventive" and "brilliantly outrageous" by critics in the past few months. I agree with both of those remarks, but not in the good way. I am so divided about whether I actually enjoy this film: it's either a ridiculous social comedy or a dark, satirical comment on American capitalism. Maybe it's both? Who knows. Unfortunately, I'm leaning more towards not liking it because of the film's main issue of failing to get its message across while providing an engaging story.

The first time I saw the trailer for this film, I was instantly hooked by the cast and premise alone. Lakeith Stanfield, Tessa Thompson, Steven Yeun, and Armie Hammer are incredible in their roles of Cassius, Detroit, Squeeze, and Steve Lift, respectively. All of their performances were great (but not astounding) and they did make me really care about their characters. I especially loved Stanfield's Cassius Green. His character went through the most development in this film and accompanied with the writing, made him a fantastic lead. Armie Hammer was the other standout, as his antagonistic CEO provided a great contrast to our lead and his humor was utilized very well.

Doug Emmett's cinematography was decent as well, as it kept me very engaged. Some of my favorite shots included when Cassius was calling his customers and his desk "fell into" their homes. This was so clever and I appreciated the focus on visual storytelling. One of the most memorable aspects of this film, however, was the aesthetic and the design. I loved the mildly afrofuturistic yet Californian style that the director, Boots Riley, used in his first feature film. I can definitely see this style becoming a trademark of Riley's, but unfortunately, he seems to favor style over substance. I adored how the first hour or so of the film was going, with Cassius's new telemarketing job and the clear message of capitalism's destruction. There was some fantastic and original humor as the story was so cleverly written, but the third act threw me for the wildest loop that I did NOT see coming.

The biggest issue with this film was its inability to clearly express a strong message. The main metaphor throughout the entire movie was obviously capitalism, except it wasn't really a metaphor, more of a wake-up call. The writing had no problem with pounding this into the audience's heads and I feel like it could have been a lot more subtle. There were also other metaphors including racism and self-identity that were introduced, but these many messages did not blend well together. The pacing was also very poorly handled, because even though the movie was an hour and 45 minutes, it felt much longer than necessary. This also made me feel very uneasy during the entire film, but I assume that was the intended purpose.

If you thought that this film was an extremely smart take on capitalism, would you PLEASE explain to me why Riley thought the horse-human hybrids were a smart choice? I understand that this is an alternate Oakland where science-fiction madness is more understandable, but the entire horse plot was too over-the-top. I feel that there could have been a different device for displaying how ruthlessly cruel Lift was to his employees. The fact that he literally made his workers snort coke that transformed them into Bojack Horseman in order to increase productivity was ridiculous. I originally thought that after Cassius had snorted the coke and saw the horses, he would sober up and realize what he was doing was wrong and go back to the lower level telemarketing to turn his life around. But that wasn't the case, as even he eventually turned into one of the horses. This was in the last few shots of the film, and I honestly feel that they could have been left out. Cassius turning into one of the hybrids was so off-putting and abrupt, and did nothing for the overarching message. Tessa Thompson's Detroit also had some strange development through the movie. The writing did not make me care about her art show subplot in the slightest and I feel that her character could have been grown a bit more. Also, the romantic subplot between her and Squeeze was very predictable and nonchalant, which made no sense for their passionate characters.

Whatever your opinion on the handling of the messages is, there is no debate that this film will become a modern cult classic. Sorry to Bother You is indeed an original idea with boundless potential, but that was unfortunately wasted on an unclear premise. It was, however, still a wild ride that I recommend watching. And if you love it, awesome! If you're not as enthusiastic about it and have to take some Excedrin afterwards, then join the club.

My Rating: ★★★

Ant-Man and the Wasp (2018) directed by Peyton Reed

After the release of Avengers: Infinity War, it became clear that fans needed a nice breath of fresh air after that horrid ending. Luckily, Lang and the gang are here to provide just that. Ant-Man and the Wasp is a light, yet exciting Marvel film that solidifies these titular characters as some of the most enjoyable in the MCU. While it may not necessarily be groundbreaking, this film is a much-needed escape from the dark future of our favorite heroes.

Ant-Man and the Wasp takes place after the events of Captain America: Civil War where Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) is found under house arrest for his international crimes in Germany. Estranged from Hope van Dyne (Evangeline Lilly) and her father Hank Pym (Michael Douglas), Scott and his former associates' paths meet up once again in order to reveal some secrets from their pasts. Meanwhile, a new threat known as Ghost (Hannah John-Kamen) appears to threaten the heroes while they are on the run from the FBI.

The most exciting part of this film is the addition of the new characters and how their stories work together for the overall plot. Hope finally takes up the mantle of the Wasp and the arc with her father made for an interesting dynamic. While they are attempting to locate the whereabouts of Hope's mother, Janet van Dyne (Michelle Pfeiffer), they are forced to reunite with Scott to accomplish that goal. This all happens while the three are on the run from many different characters. The FBI, a vengeful gang leader named Sonny Burch (Walton Goggins), and Ghost along with her mentor Bill Foster (Laurence Fishburne) are all trying to get their hands on Pym's technology and will stop at nothing until they do so. These storylines are blended very well together and kept the audience engaged all the way through.

Rudd and Lily, like the first installment, have the best performances of the whole cast. Rudd maintains Lang's sarcastic and fun-loving personality while showing that he is truly the best dad of the MCU. His daughter Cassie (Abby Ruder Fortson) provides his motivation throughout the film, as he is once again attempting to prove that he can be a great father regardless of his past. Lily was fantastic in her fiercely determine role as Hope, and it is refreshing to see the strong chemistry between her and Rudd. Thankfully, this film did not entirely dwell on or force any kind of romance until it was well-deserved.

The antagonists in this film, however, were very underwhelming and unfortunately forgettable. Even though Goggins' character worked well within the context of what was happening to Hope and Hank, he could have easily been cut from the story. John-Kamen's Ghost was also not as developed as she could have been. Her tragic backstory led to generic motivations as she tried to retrieve the technology to fix her deteriorating condition. This made for a very weak villain, but she did serve his basic purpose.

Humor is one of the strongest elements in this film and it is written very well. It is not over-the-top, but it fits the tone of the movie perfectly. Luis (Michael Peña), Dave (T.I.), and Kurt (David Dastmalchian) are honestly comparable to the Three Amigos and this trio brings some of the best laughs.

On the technical front, the effects and the choreography truly stood out. Visual effects supervisor Stephanie Ceretti, SFX supervisor Dan Sudick, and their respective teams helped to make this film absolutely gorgeous. In particular, every shot inside of the quantum realm was stunning to see and made the microscopic world seem enormous in comparison. George Cottle, the stunt coordinator, made the action sequences captivating, especially those with the Wasp. Her scenes were pure exhilaration and provided agile, action-packed entertainment.

While Ant-Man and the Wasp is quite dismissible in terms of world-building, it is as delightful as the first installment, if not more, and is one of the strongest summer blockbusters of the year. And of course - like every other Marvel film - don't forget to stick around until after the credits.

My Rating: ★★★½

Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom (2018) directed by J.A. Bayona

Summer blockbuster season is in full swing, and you know what that means! Give me those unnecessary sequels, those forced romances, and those ridiculous plots that only someone who is looking to escape the heat and sit in air conditioning for two hours could bear to see! If this is what you want in a film, then Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom was made just for you. This movie is quite a mess with only a few saving graces to make it worth a watch.

Most of the problems with this film stem from the often ridiculous plot and the acting. It is so utterly silly at many points that I began to wonder if any true effort was put into the writing. However, many of these ludicrous scenes happen to be some of the most important and "exciting" points throughout the film. Scenes such as the reveal of Maisie Lockwood being a clone of another version of herself that died in a car crash and trying to shoot a gun underwater honestly just made me laugh. In these life or death situations, the audience should be gripping their seats to find out what happens next, but I was definitely not part of said audience. Having an auction for the last remaining dinosaurs? Releasing those dinosaurs into the suburbs of what looks like Arizona? These small details, while they worked together for the plot just fine, are so ridiculous. But a small part of me still can't wait to see what the writers are going to do in the third installment to top it all off. I really hope the next film will be titled Jurassic World: Blue Goes to High School, and at this point, I wouldn't be surprised if it was. There are also many plot points in this film that did not fit the story at all. When the hired army general just decided to leave Owen to die in the jungle, it did not make any sense whatsoever, besides the general being petty. And the scene with Claire and Owen refusing to open the gate to release the dinosaurs that they have spent three years trying to save also blew me away (not in a good way). These plot choices were very out-of-character and had no context behind them at all.

Other parts that did not sit well with me include the acting and the antagonist. Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard are both extraordinary artists with so much credit behind their names in other great projects. But no matter how hard they try, they simply do not have chemistry together. They were quite decent in scenes by themselves, but I personally do not think they have much compatibility. Which was especially apparent in their forced romance. That kiss towards the end was so unnecessary and easily could have been left out to make their characters build upon themselves and not rely on each other. I also could not tell you the name of the antagonist of the film, played by Rafe Spall. He was so "textbook villain" that it bored me beyond belief. There was no motivation behind his character other than getting millions of dollars from the sale of the dinosaurs. And he killed an old guy for it! However, despite these bad parts, I still do appreciate the writers making the plot a bit different than the typical "we created dinosaurs but can't control them" motif that has plagued this franchise.

For a summer blockbuster, I was surprised how colorful and visually exciting this movie was. I have noticed this trend of a minor increase in the focus on cinematography and I would really like for this trend to continue. In particular, I adored the shot of Isla Nublar being destroyed while Owen looks back at the lone, screeching brachiosaurus on the end of the pier. This shot alone got me emotionally invested and spoke so loudly. Every part of Owen's arc with finding and saving Blue was also of interest to me, as it provided a great flow from their story in the first film. The final piece that made this movie a bit reminiscent of the original Jurassic Park was the score. Michael Giacchino has been all over the place in film scores recently, and he is one name that I hope gets plenty of attention.

Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom provides a story just strange enough to keep me interested, but nothing worthy enough for any more of my money (I did use a free Harkins pass, after all). This is the perfect popcorn movie and I can honestly say that I was satisfied with it. But that's only because I had no expectations whatsoever.

My Rating: ★★½