I WANT IT ALL!

    HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL 3: SENIOR YEAR - A Blu-Ray Film Review

Can I have this dance? Absolutely, don't mind if I do!

The High School Musical Trilogy. It happened. Many would like to pretend it didn't, but I know the truth. I am one of those feared ones who loves the series unabashedly. And I am a grown ass man of thirty years and counting. I first watched High School Musical on DVD in 2006 after the phenomenon first hit the airwaves. I loved it. I still do. Let us not forget here that High School Musical was a Disney Channel Original Movie. It was made for TV, not a theatrical release. It was low budget. Very low budget. Under $1 million I'm sure. It was an underdog movie. Literally. Nobody making that little TV film could comprehend the tsunami headed their way. Director/Choreographer Kenny Ortega (Dirty Dancing and Hocus Pocus) and his cast and crew just tried to make the best they could out of what very limited resources they had. And you know something? They succeeded. For this grown man anyway. Zac Efron, Vanessa Hudgens, Ashley Tisdale, Lucas Grabeel, Corbin Bleu, and Monique Coleman (A South Carolina native) were all virtual nobodies in the Hollywood arena. Tisdale had the Disney Channel show The Suite Life of Zack and Cody's sarcastic supporting role of Maddie Fitzpatrick as as her biggest claim to fame beforehand, but it was High School Musical that, however briefly, launched her into the hall of fame for teen/tween idols. High School Musical was, and still is, a sweet and harmless slice of feel good fluff that holds up still no doubt because it was not made with aspirations of phenomenon-hood, but just the love of song and dance theatricality and sweet romantic imagination. It is not a portrait of High School reality. High School Fantasy more like, but I'll bet that there were some teenagers watching who wished that their own high school lives were as simple and clean as those of Troy, Gabriella, Sharpay, Ryan, Chad, and Taylor. Lives where the various cliques and clubs got along in an overall peaceful communal way and there were no drugs or bullying to be seen. Oh to dream a dream of a time that never was. After stumbling ever so slightly with the rushed second outing, simply titled High School Musical 2, because of course Disney recognized a flash bang sensation when they had one and were eager to capitalize on it (who wouldn't be honestly? And I like High School Musical 2 alright), the series came to a highly apt and sweet conclusion on October 24th of 2008. And this final bow for a gaggle of characters that had become like best friends for an entire generation of youngsters would not be confined to the small screen, but with a drastically upped $11 million budget (drastically from a TV movie that is) they would give their final show on the big silver screen around the world. WOW!

It is Senior Year for our flock of East High Wildcats as Troy Bolton, Gabriella Montez, Sharpay and Ryan Evans, Chad Danforth, and Taylor McKessie confront the radical life changes that are headed their way once they don the robes and toss the caps. High School is ending and adulthood looms large on the horizon. All seem to be pretty well set on what they want out of their lives. Gabriella is bound for an honorary early admissions program for Stanford University. Taylor is headed for Yale. Chad has his sights on the University of Albuquerque Basketball Program and expects his best friend to do the same. Sharpay and Ryan are eyeing a special scholarship for Juilliard, as is Kelsi Nielsen, the sweet and soft spoken musical composer played by Olesya Rulin. When Troy finds that someone has submitted his name to Juilliard and that he has been selected for consideration for the one scholarship available, that also happens to be the one Sharpay, Ryan, and Kelsi are up for, suddenly he is thrown into turmoil as he is made aware of other destinies that he has never considered before. Will he have the courage to go against what is expected of him by his father and his best friend and take command of his own fate? And will his love for Gabriella survive the impending storms? 

High School Musical 3: Senior Year is truly a remarkable achievement for a little series that could. Owen Gleiberman of Entertainment Weekly called the film "an honest jolt of feel good fizz". That is the perfect encapsulation for all that Senior Year is. It's a movie made with honest intentions by its makers. I said that High School Musical 2 was an ever so slight stumble, well the cast and crew came back for round three and decided that they were going to make their last one their best and pulled out all the stops. Gone is the TV cinematography, which was certainly very good for what it is, and in its place is a gorgeous filmic sheen and sublime theatrical lighting that add so much to the scope of the musical numbers in this film. The screen cap above is from one of those dance numbers and it is my favorite of the film. A sweet waltz shared by Troy and Gabriella (Efron and Hudgens) on the roof of East High. The entire returning cast all step up their respective games and make sure their characters go out in high and surprisingly poignant style.

 Zac Efron and Vanessa Hudgens have sweet chemistry together that gives their seemingly too perfect high school sweetheart romance a feeling of genuine urgent poignancy and intimacy. I know some out there say that this relationship could never last in the real world, but wait a minute. There have been couples who began as high school sweethearts who went on to strong and healthy marriages. So who can say that Troy and Gabriella's relationship won't stay the course? I say it seems entirely possible. They also do fine separately. Zac continues to show himself as an earnest and honest face in front of the camera. He sells Troy's conflict between the two sides of who he is with passion and believability. Vanessa also has some poignant moments of her own as Gabriella is faced, once again, with having to move away and leave everyone she has come to know and love behind. Corbin Bleu also steps back up to the plate and bats a thousand as Troy's loyal best friend from childhood, Chad Danforth. Corbin is sincere and heartfelt as the rest and his final scene with Zac alone is an emotional stunner. The two of them truly come off as real friends, not just actors playing pretend. Ashley Tisdale is back as the hilariously narcissistic and sweetly nasty Sharpay Evans and she takes command of the screen whenever she is on it. She delivers all of her zingers with perfect sardonicism and her dance and singing skills are put to exceptional use in a dazzlingly choreographed number called I Want it All, along with Lucas Grabeel as her sweet natured choreographer brother Ryan. Now, Ryan started the series as a villainess cohort to his sister, but gratefully Lucas and screenwriter Peter Barsocchini have allowed Ryan to grow and develop over the course of the trilogy. To me the now best part of High School Musical 2 was the delightfully surprising evolution of Ryan's character from tagalong patsy to a young man with his own desires that are nowhere near as back-stabbingly inclined as his sister. Ryan's development is simply wonderful and it comes to a beautiful conclusion in Senior Year. Monique Coleman is sweet and supportive as Gabriella's best friend Taylor McKessie.  She doesn't get all the screen time, but what she has she makes it count. Olesya Rulin is the top of the supporting players as Kelsi Nielsen who began in High School Musical as the put upon composer for the Winter musical who became fast friends with Troy and Gabriella when they met her and showed genuine appreciation for her talent. Rulin is adorable and she makes her every scene count. Bart Johnson as Troy's dad is back again and he also steps up his game and has a couple of genuinely poignant scenes with Efron as father and son come to a head over Troy's future. 

I am giving an entire paragraph to Alyson Reed. Who? She plays the Drama teacher Mrs. Darbus. In High School Musical she was shown to be a strict disciplinarian with an exceptional hatred for cellphones and in High School Musical 2 she was reduced to a one scene scenery chewer, but in Senior Year, Reed as Mrs. Darbus finally gets a chance to really show what she is made of. She retains some of the theatrical flair that marked her character in the first two, but now she also brings unexpected depth of feeling and a genuinely warm and more maternal side to her role, especially as it pertains to her relationship with Troy. A later scene between Reed and Efron in a darkened high school auditorium at night, after Troy comes to the school to work out his angst in another imaginatively choreographed song and dance number, is a showstopper in the best way possible as Mrs. Darbus reveals her knowledge of Troy's confusion about his future and graciously, warmly, and gently encourages Troy to consider all of his options while he still can before time and life may take them away from him. Reed is exceptional here and I couldn't be happier that Barsocchini gave her such a great scene to play. And really Darbus shows great compassion and care for all of her charges and Reed knocks every minute she has on screen out of the park. 

Senior Year does look exceptionally good. The higher budget is put to very good use and the production design and camera work take on a much more polished appearance befitting a theatrical presentation. Kenny Ortega's direction is steady and assured and his choreography, along with co-choreographers Charles "Chucky" Klapow and Bonnie Story, is vibrant and energetic. The songs are also catchy and fun. Can I Have This Dance is my personal favorite, but the whole soundtrack is infectious. 

High School Musical 3: Senior Year truly is "an honest jolt of feel good fizz" as Mr. Gleiberman put it. It honestly feels good watching it. It is uplifting and even invigorating. And for that it will not be everyone's cup of tea. This is a movie that is aimed primarily at kids, but if I can love and enjoy it at age thirty then so can others. Also, if this Trilogy of two TV movies and one theatrical film can get even one child interested in musical theater as a whole? How bad can that possibly be? You have to start somewhere right? And High School Musical is not a terrible place to start. I love the all three and I really love High School Musical 3: Senior Year. It is a beautiful and wonderful slice of joyous fantasy entertainment that just so happens to have a more honest heart than many give it credit for. 

5/5

Eric Spearman 12/30/2015

P.S. Well, this is probably my last post on here for the year of 2015 and I only started a couple of weeks ago. Wow. Anyway, I will have a list of my Top 5 favorite films of 2015 coming on here soon. I may try to do a video for it, but we'll see how that works out. Until then I hope everyone has a great Happy New Year ahead. Later ya'll. 

Jake Lloyd and the Needless Hate He Still Receives.

        

    Jake Lloyd was only seven years old when he was selected out of however many hundreds or thousands of young boys auditioned for the much hyped role of young Darth Vader to be Anakin Skywalker in the first of George Lucas' still much maligned, and so unfairly in many cases, Prequel Trilogy named Episode One - The Phantom Menace. I was only thirteen years old when Star Wars Episode One - The Phantom Menace was unleashed onto cinema screens around the world in May of 1999. Such massive hype and anticipation followed the film onto the screen, even from me, that of course there was bound to be a segment of the filmgoing public that would be disappointed in the final product that had been seventeen long years coming. I remember watching the trailers for Phantom Menace on tiny little Quicktime Windows (remember that?) that took forever to load on dialup internet. For the new generation who doesn't know what dialup is, it is what we old-timers had before the digital revolution took over in the new millennium. I remember getting genuine chills watching the fantastic images in the trailers, all accompanied by the stirring and majestic chords of John Williams' revelatory Star Wars score. I loved The Phantom Menace when I saw it in the theater finally. It gave me everything my thirteen year old imagination craved. I loved it when it was released on VHS back when DVD had yet to fully catch on. And when George finally decided to switch to DVD and released a magnificent two disc DVD edition in glorious Anamorphic Widescreen and with a huge array of bonus documentaries and other features I was hooked. 

However, there was a dark shadow spreading throughout the Star Wars universe that had nothing to do with evil Sith Lords or the Dark Side of the Force. It was instead the dark side of humanity itself that was spreading over the once fertile imaginative plains of The Phantom Menace. The shadow of hatred for a child who had no comprehension when he was signed for the role of a lifetime the sheer size and enormous scope and scale of the shit storm that was about to blow over his whole life from then on as reviews poured in and he was singled out for particularly vehement ridicule and just plain unwarranted animosity from "fans" as well as the critics. The hate continues to flow freely today, and even I for a time was swept up in it until I watched the films again on Blu and realized what an ass I was making out of myself following such blind hate. It hit such a fever pitch that Jake has since destroyed all of his Star Wars memorabilia and "sworn off" the series for pretty much ever. And even now looking at some of the vitriol that is thrown around about him on Facebook, Twitter, and film forums around the web TO THIS DAY I cannot say I blame him or that I would not do that same thing if I had to endure the relentless hounding he has from this film. When you are being called a "child monstrosity" in the press how the hell would you respond? 

My reason for writing this entry is something I heard just a little under a week ago when I was browsing through the videos of a certain Youtube reviewer called The Flick Pick. It was a review of his from 2012 for the 3D re-release of The Phantom Menace and something he said in that video so shocked and reviled me that after some time thinking about it, and to be honest some other stuff, I just had to get this out there. When I heard this guy say "why hasn't Jake Lloyd overdosed like other former child actors and died yet?" my mouth fell open in shock. I could not believe what I had just heard. This... callously hateful remark about someone he did not even know personally was just sickening. Now I'm thinking someone should walk up to this guy in the street and pop a cap in his skull. You so callously make a death wish for someone else you should have that thrown back at you. 

Now, I ask you to put yourself in the shoes of Jake Lloyd at age nine when he's just been told that he's won one of the most coveted roles in film history in the world's most popular space adventure Saga. What would you be feeling in that moment? Because I imagine little Jake at the time was excited beyond words. Filming commences and you show up to set to work for a scant few hours a day because of the labor laws for children and you do what your director tells you to do. He tells you to say the line and say that line and to do so "faster and more intense". He yells "cut, print, and check the gate". Your day's work is done. You go off to school. You have no way of gauging your performance in any given take. This continues for however many months the film is in principal photography. Principal photography wraps and the film moves into post-production as you go your way until the premiere day. The director goes into the editing room and sorts through all of the footage filmed over the shoot and selects every take that you are in that he wants to go into the finished movie. Premiere time approaches and you have not even seen the film, let alone your own performance in it, and the world is alight with high feverish anticipation for the film event of 1999 that is destined to go down in history. The film opens. The reviews come in and YOU are singled out and ridiculed and lambasted and just generally dragged through mud and filth with critics calling you "unctuous" and "annoying" and "monstrous" while fans scream about how you "killed Star Wars". What do you do with that kind of reaction at age nine, or ten probably by the time the film came out? How do you cope with that kind of hatred being thrown at you by the most critical audience in the entire world? I doubt any child that young would have the strength to stand against such vile regard and walk away unscarred. Jake has been scarred. He still very much is and I personally would love to get to meet him and just give him some kind word of encouragement and let him know that not everyone hates him for something that he had no control over when all was said and done. What would you do if it was your child in that position? And as for The Flick Pick and others like him, though he seems at first glance to be a funny guy, I say screw all of you and I ask what any of you would have done if it had been you cast in that role and you receiving all of the hate that Jake has? My guess is you would have probably overdosed by now. Be careful what you say.

Yes there are a few choice words in here because this genuinely pisses me off. 

Y

YOU CAN FLY! YOU CAN FLY!

PAN - A Blu-Ray Film Review

Think of a wonderful thought. Any happy little thought. You're a PAN Peter!!

Peter Pan. One of the most well known fantasy stories ever conceived. Even people like me who never opened one of J.M. Barrie's books know about the "boy who never grows up". This can be largely attributed to one Walt Disney and his 1953 animated film of Peter Pan, which happened to be a part of my childhood, VHS, as well as many others I can well imagine. It was never really a favorite of mine even with the gorgeous animation Walt's Studio was known for. I don't hate it, but it's nowhere near the classic to me that it is to many. That would be Sleeping Beauty for me if we are talking of Uncle Walt's era. Anyway, that film introduced who knows how many countless millions of children around the globe to the "boy who could fly" and his arch nemesis Captain Hook. And his trusty fairy sidekick Tinkerbell too. Of course there were countless stage adaptations and other things made from this story over the years. Steven Spielberg took a crack at a live action big screen version featuring an adult Peter Pan starring Robin Williams as said adult Pan and Dustin Hoffman as the nefarious Captain Hook. This film was called Hook and released by Columbia Pictures in 1991. That film was critically and financially reviled upon its release, but it has grown a nice following over the years as it has been reevaluated and many now see it as one of Spielberg's more misunderstood and under-appreciated works. Then in 2003, a whopping FIVE DECADES after Walt's animated "masterpiece", a director named P.J. Hogan, whose biggest claim to fame at the time was a Julia Roberts vehicle called My Best Friend's Wedding, brought another attempt at telling the tale of Peter Pan in live action big budget fashion with a film simply titled... Peter Pan released by Universal. Now this film I really loved the first time I saw it on the big screen. It was stunningly gorgeous. The effects were deliberately crafted to have a more "storybook-ish" look rather than going for photo-realism and this resulted in a visual feast of incredible scope and scale. A young American boy named Jeremy Sumpter played Peter in this version and it was the first time the role had ever been played by an actual young boy in live action. He was good too. A newcomer young actress named Rachel Hurd-Wood played Wendy Darling and she gave a tremendous performance that totally belied her inexperience. She was a natural beauty and had charisma and screen presence to spare. Jason Isaacs played Hook in that film, which I own proudly and am definitely going to have to give it another watch after all these years, as well as Mr. Darling, which was a conceit spawned in the many stage iterations where the actor playing the role of the children's father would also play Hook. This version of the story would also bomb pretty terribly at the box office and would seem to be lost to the dust bin of cinematic history among the many other children's fantasy stories that were being adapted at the time after a certain boy wizard made a splash with his pals at a little place called Hogwarts in 2001. 

Well now. Just press the fast forward button for another 12 years, and several needless delays and release date changes, and we end up with the subject of this little review of mine. PAN. Released by Warner Bros Pictures. Directed by Joe Wright, a very talented guy whose work I admire, specifically his gorgeous umpteenth filmed version of Jane Austen's Pride & Prejudice starring Keira Knightley released in 2005 which was his first film and showed him as a director of immaculate vision behind the camera. Starring Hugh Jackman as Blackbeard, Garret Hedlund as James Hook, Rooney Mara as Princess Tiger Lily, and Levi Miller as Peter Pan. PAN positions itself as an origin story of Peter Pan. Peter Pan Begins you could call it. And it is kind of true in that sense. We open with Peter as a baby being dropped off at an Orphanage doorway by a young woman, played by Amanda Seyfried, at night. She appears very scared and also immensely torn over what she is about to do, but she leaves her baby on the steps with a note she hopes he will read one day, this sounds kind of familiar here (*cough* Harry Potter *cough*), and flees into the night. 12 years later the baby has grown into a boy named, of course, Peter. Heck, she calls him that before she leaves just so the new young audience can know that this is the baby destined to never grow up. And now it is WWII and London is being bombed almost nightly by the German army. When Peter dares to try and expose the nasty Headmistress of the orphanage for stealing the rations being provided for the orphans' care for herself Peter finds himself whisked away in the night by a band of pirates aboard a flying ship that takes him to, just guess, where he is put to work in a mine mining Pixum, seriously that is the term applied to fairy dust in here, for the dreaded Blackbeard, played with snarling maniacal glee by Hugh Jackman. And Mr. Jackman leads the denizens of the mine in singing Nirvana's Smells Like Teen Spirit. Yes, I just said it and it has been made much of in other reviews before now. So, it should come as no surprise to you then that if that song, which I have never listened to in full and yet I do recognize the lyrics, shows up in a PETER PAN movie then that movie is very idiosyncratic indeed. It is, but you know something? I like it. It's weird, but also weirdly enjoyable and fun to watch Jackman tear into the scenery around him as if he were an actor on death row and this was his last meal. In fact, thanks to some rather incredible makeup Wolverine actually looks as if he really is two steps from death sometimes. Funny how that works out. Anyway, to wrap up the summary, there is a prophecy (Of course, why wouldn't there be?) that speaks of a boy born from the union between a Fairy Prince and a human girl, who was whisked away to the human world when Blackbeard was trying to exterminate all the fairies for their Pixum, who will one day return to Neverland and bring about Blackbeard's demise and the salvation of the Fairy Kingdom. It's another damn "CHOSEN ONE" movie! Really?! 

  Indeed, the makers of PAN have turned J.M. Barrie's simple story of a boy who never grows old and has to constantly fight against the evil of aging in the form of a hook-handed pirate into yet another variation on the age old narrative convention of the "chosen one" who must save the day even though he doesn't believe it himself until it's almost too late and all hope seems lost. However, Pan is actually a fun ride. I'm serious. This is thanks in no small part to Joe Wright's exceptional visual flair and a blessedly fleet pace that keeps the story moving forward with nary a break. And the performances are fun. Jackman I've already mentioned and he does indeed chow down on the scenic buffet around him, but what of the boy who flies? Introducing Levi Miller as Peter Pan. This was proudly touted on the film's marketing and for good reason. Miller is actually quite impressive in the title role of the movie. He's got the pluck and fire that the character is known for, but he also has to bring in the shades of doubt and disbelief needed in order to make his journey as the prophesied "chosen one", seriously the movie throws that out there near constantly as if we could forget at any moment, believable. Miller is up for it all under Wright's direction and he is gamely supported by another scenery munching turn from Garret Hedlund as James Hook. And he is not a bad guy. Yet. There was supposed to be a whole slew of sequels after this one to show how Pan and Hook become enemies despite being best buds now, but that will likely never surface as PAN is also a gigantic flop for Warner Bros. One of many this year. However, Hedlund appears to be having a genuine gas in the role and keeps it lively. There's enough of the scoundrel in this Hook to see shades of what he will eventually become, but again we will likely never see this PAN out. HA! I punned the title. I feel so proud of myself. Rooney Mara as Tiger Lily. A caucasian woman in a role traditionally recognized as being Native American in the stories upon which the film is based. This casting decision of course sparked cries of racial "whitewashing" by the vocal groups concerned with such things. Wright was merely trying to avoid the accusations of racism thrown at the many other versions of Peter Pan throughout the years for their portrayals of the Native people, particularly the red faced stereotypes found in Uncle Walt's cherished 1953 animated film. That segment of that film gets so many peoples' goats today that it's a wonder the film still finds release in such a charged and volatile climate. Mara is fine and spirited in the role and really there is enough ethnic diversity in the Native Tribe of the film that fits what Wright was trying to do. It makes more sense that if the "Natives" of Neverland are merely people plucked from our world at various times that they would be a more ethnically diverse group rather than the straight Native American caricature that Walt portrayed, and J.M. Barrie before him. Now, keep in mind that like many films of Walt's era the portrayals are a product of their time. Wright was nobly trying to not offend one group of people, but as is often the case he wound up "offending" several more and I personally cry bullshit on all of it. Racism has no basis in this film. It is a FANTASY! It's about a boy who can fly and fairies and mermaids and other such things that have absolutely no basis in reality and the film doesn't even attempt to ground itself in reality. Why should it? IT HAS FLYING PIRATE SHIPS AND A PLANET SMALL ENOUGH FOR A BOY TO HOLD IT IN HIS ARMS! These pricks who cry "racism" at any and every little thing really piss me off. Okay, end rant. We come at last to Amanda Seyfried. She is barely in the movie for two minutes, but I guess she does what she has to do fine enough.

Okay. What about those visual effects? Well, they are as one would expect for a big budget film released in this era with the embarrassment of tech developments available to us. They are superb in other words. PAN looks like a million bucks. Well, more like $150 million if we're being real here. Two credited cinematographers worked on it, Seamus McGarvey and John Mathieson, and the movie could scarcely look more slick and polished if it tried. The production design by Aline Bonetto is fitting for the world of the film. The music by John Powell, who composed one of my all time favorite film scores with 2010's How To Train Your Dragon, is nice enough for the film and as eccentric to boot. So, with all of this, audio/visual specs for the film on Blu-Ray are par for what should be expected for a digitally shot and recorded film this recent and with the hefty price tag this one had. And indeed Warner Bros. has shuffled their second big box office bomb of the year off to home video a mere two and a half months after its theatrical debut. This has to be the shortest window for a major film yet. 

Now, I may have enjoyed this version of PAN immensely while watching it, but the fact that it bombed so severely and that bombing means that we will almost certainly never see a continuation of this film that was supposed to start a new trilogy, well that means that this version of PAN, while fun, will always feel incomplete in a way. It's not the Peter Pan you grew up hearing about although seeds are being sown throughout PAN that tease at the coming developments that we will never get to see. It's a fun ride while it lasts and contains enough spirited performances and sleek visuals to keep attention, but it probably won't be one of those reevaluated films like Spielberg's Hook many years down the line. I don't think PAN will ever be considered a misunderstood or under-appreciated gem, but for my money it's a likable fantasy funhouse ride. Nothing life changing, but sturdy enough for me to be happy to have it around. 

3.5/5 

Review written by Eric Spearman 12/23/2015

            

Some films I look forward to, or am curious about, in 2016.

Well. My second post of the day, but it will be different. I will not only post film reviews here, but also talk about upcoming films that I am excited for. This is a look at some films that look promising to me coming up in 2016. To start in no particular order...

WarCraft

I am not a gamer. However, this looks like a fun fantasy extravaganza filled with magical battles and big hulking musclebound Orcs that could put The Rock in traction. It just looks fun and if it provides that I'm down for it. Is it something I'm frothing at the mouth over? No, but I still want to see it and look forward to what it promises. And damn, who knew that orcs could look so fine?

Independence Day: Resurgence

Yeah. They're back. Those dratted aliens who tried to wipe us out in 1996 have come back two decades later, I feel so old because it has been THAT LONG already, in an attempt to finish the job and director Roland Emmerich looks to deliver what he always does. BIG DUMB FUN! The trailer is awesome to me though. The music and the use of that great speech from the first one, you know it... "Today you will once again be fighting for our freedom.  Not from tyranny, oppression, or persecution, but from annihilation. And should we win the day the 4th of July will no longer be known as an American holiday, but as the day the day when the whole world declared in one voice WE WILL NOT GO QUIETLY INTO THE NIGHT! WE WILL NOT VANISH WITHOUT A FIGHT! WE'RE GOING TO LVE ON! WE'RE GOING TO SURVIVE! TODAY WE CELEBRATE OUR INDEPENDENCE DAY!" HOO-FREAKING-RAH! Bring it on Roland, bring it on! And Goldblum's line at the end is pricelessly Goldblum. "That's definitely bigger than the last one." Commenting on the film itself Jeff?
    
                                           
The BFG

Two words. Spielberg. Disney. Enough said.

A Monster Calls

LIAM NEESON! That voice. And this just looks like a brilliant little movie. Very promising teaser. Sigourney is in there too? Awesome. I have not seen The Orphanage, but I have seen The Impossible and from that I can conclude that J.A. Bayona is a talented dude and I want to see what he does here. This and the BFG trailer have a bit in common. They both have similar final shots.

Captain America: Civil War

Oh my stars and garters this looks like it's going to be intense. The Winter Soldier is a beautifully fantastic movie and Avengers: Age of Ultron was a mucho huge team movie, but Civil War looks like it is really going to be taking the Marvel Cinematic Universe into much darker and grittier directions than ever before. Wow!

X-Men Apocalypse

Bryan Singer is back in the big chair after his triumphant return with 2014's X-Men Days of Future Past and Apocalypse once again looks to take this series into even darker and more intense waters. Look out!

The Legend of Tarzan

Hmmm. This could be very entertaining and David Yates is the director. For those who don't know, he directed the last four Harry Potter films and the next film on this little jaunt...

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them

Yep. A spinoff of the Harry Potter universe created by author J.K. Rowling is making its way to the big screen next November under the guidance of David Yates who brought the original Potter film series through to its conclusion. And Eddie Redmayne is the lead. Should be interesting.

Star Trek Beyond

Justin Lin takes the directing reigns from J.J. Abrams and it does indeed look like some of his Fast & Furious experience has rubbed off on the new Trek, but it still looks like a good time at the theater. That's what I want! With this cast!

That is enough for now I think. There will be more eventually and maybe a more in-depth discussion of a couple of these. We will see. For now this where I leave you. Have a good night all.

My first Blog review coming to you from "a galaxy far, far away..."

STAR WARS EPISODE VII - THE FORCE AWAKENS : A Review 

Star Wars. A Saga born from the brain of one George Lucas in 1977. It is now over three decades old and going on four in just another year and a half. The very mention of the title can trigger any number of multiple reactions ranging from "fall down prostrate" adoration to fist clenching anger and hatred. Fans of the series itself are divided into many different factions, all at war with one another, arguing to this day over what constitutes "true" Star Wars. There is the Original Trilogy, or OT, that consists of Star Wars (later renamed to Episode IV - A New Hope), The Empire Strikes Back (Episode V), and Return of the Jedi (Episode VI). There is a plethora of books, video games, and cartoons released in the wake of the OT that has come to be known as the Star Wars Expanded Universe, or EU. Then in 1999, 17 years after the release of Return of the Jedi, George Lucas released the first volley of what would become the Prequel Trilogy, or PT, that consists of Episode I - The Phantom Menace, Episode II - Attack of the Clones, and Episode III - Revenge of the Sith. Many fans consider the PT to be an abomination even though it sought to explain the origins of the conflict witnessed in the OT. To this day, ten years after the last of the Prequels was released, the PT remains divisive, with heated arguments still raging over their credibility and worth as films in the official Star Wars canon. Not to mention the Special Edition remixes Lucas released of his OT with new scenes and expanded effects that also set fans ablaze with reactions ranging from content acceptance to vehement denial.

Lucas became so disillusioned with his brainchild due to the incessant hate from fans over what he had done to his films that in 2012 he did the unthinkable and sold off the rights to his whole company, Lucasfilm Ltd., that included the rights to his baby Star Wars to the cultural behemoth Disney Co. Lucas made off with a $4 billion payday and Disney was able to add another legendary franchise to their banner that includes Marvel and Pixar. Fans were aghast. How could Lucas betray them again? Hadn't the Special Editions and the PT been enough of a slap in the face? Well, the joke is on those "fans" because they were the ones who drove Lucas to that point. With Star Wars now firmly under their umbrella Disney immediately set about launching a whole new Sequel Trilogy, or ST, as well as a series of standalone spinoff films that will be known as the Star Wars Anthology.

To kickoff both new directions Disney/Lucasfilm looked to directors who were either already established or promising up and comers to take the reigns of the flagship films from both new series. The first Anthology film, now titled Rogue One - A Star Wars Story, was granted to Gareth Edwards, an up and coming director I rather greatly admire who had made a bit of an impact with his first feature film Monsters in 2010. An extremely low budget, under $1 million, Sci-Fi creature feature made with only two actors and extremely minimal crew that surprised many with how beautiful much of it ended up looking with Edwards doing all of the visual effects himself on his home computer. He was gifted the honor of directing the 2014 Legendary reboot of Godzilla to, in my opinion, staggeringly excellent results as a result of Monsters. Rogue One - A Star Wars Story is set to be released on December 16 of 2016. Now, to direct the first in a whole new Trilogy that would pick up after the fateful events of Return of the Jedi Disney turned to a director with some already well established credentials. J.J. Abrams has become known throughout Hollywood as something of a reviver of old film and TV series long thought dead. He started on TV actually and the series that bear his name are very well renowned. ABC's Lost anyone? Or Alias? Or more recently Fringe? He made his feature film directorial debut in 2006 with the third installment of the Mission Impossible film franchise. After two radically different films before it M:I-3 was rather well received overall for being somewhat a course correction for the series. His second feature film, however, is where it really gets interesting. Another iconic old Sci-Fi series with Star in its title owned by Paramount was in dire straights and in need of some fresh blood. Star Trek! Abrams' reboot of that series was a critical darling upon release and managed to make a pretty nice impact on viewers overall who had thought Star Trek was bound for the graveyard of history. Ironically, maybe, many said that Star Trek 09 had more in common with Star Wars than really anything from previous Trek outings. This was no accident that 09 Trek had some Wars in it as Abrams has freely admitted that while he likes Trek he was always more into Wars. Super 8, a loving tribute to the films J.J. grew up watching and adoring, and the first sequel to the new Star Trek series titled Into Darkness followed in 2011 and 2013 respectively.

It was after Into Darkness' release that Disney approached J.J. about Star Wars. Of course he said yes to directing a new film and now, two years later, after much hype and anticipation, not to mention sheer terror and anxiety on Abrams' part, we have arrived at the beginning of a brand new chapter in the legendary Star Wars Saga. Does Star Wars Episode VII - The Force Awakens, or just Star Wars The Force Awakens on all promotional material, live up to the monolithic hype that has surrounded it from its very first official announcement?

YES! Yes, Yes, Yes and more Yes! In this humble, and new, reviewer's opinion The Force Awakens is nothing short of a monumental success that delivers every conceivable thing that a film bearing the Star Wars name should deliver. It is loads of fun and it expands the mythic universe that George Lucas spawned almost four decades ago into enticing new directions. Paying great homage to what has gone before, and yes that means even the much maligned PT (which I happen to love), but especially to Abrams' beloved OT (more specifically A New Hope), The Force Awakens is the infusion of new passion and blood that Star Wars, like Trek before it, desperately needed to survive into a new generation.

Now the story. I will not spoil any major plot points, I promise. 30 years after Return of the Jedi ended with the defeat of the evil Galactic Empire a new threat has emerged out of the Empire's ruins. The First Order, under the leadership of Supreme Leader Snoke (Andy Serkis), his immediate subordinate and Dark Side warrior Kylo Ren (Adam Driver), and General Hux (Domhnall Gleeson) is in full swing attempting to reinstitute Imperial rule over the Galaxy and they have a new and powerful weapon on their side. Starkiller Base, a super weapon of mass destruction capable of destroying an entire planetary system from lightyears away, built into a planet itself. General Organa (heretofore known as Princess Leia played by Carrie Fisher) is the leader of the Resistance to this new regime and has sent her best and most daring pilot named Poe Dameron (Oscar Isaac) on a very important mission to retrieve a missing piece of a map that will reveal the location of an old ally who has gone into hiding. Poe finds the missing piece on the desert planet of Jakku and soon after The First Order shows up also seeking the map. Poe pulls a Princess Leia and hides the critical information in his much beloved droid companion BB-8 and sends the droid away to avoid its capture before being captured himself. A First Order Stormtrooper named FN-2187 or "Finn" as he will be called from here on (John Boyega) comes into the mix when he decides to forsake the First Order and he too ends up on Jakku. Living on Jakku is a young woman named Rey (brilliant newcomer Daisy Ridley) who works to obtain limited food rations as a scavenger looting the remains of ruined Imperial Star Destroyers and other vehicles that litter the desert landscape. When Rey comes across BB-8 and Finn the three of them are catapulted into an adventure that will bring them face to face with familiar old heroes like Han Solo (Harrison Ford) and Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill).

I have desperately tried to avoid spoiling anything huge in the above synopsis. What's there is essentially covered in the film's trademarked Title Scroll. Now, yes indeed J.J. pays tribute left and right to iconic Star Wars staples, but never once does he let the homage overbear the new story he is trying to set up. That's right, set up. I agree with reviewer Chris Stuckmann who rightly points out that George Lucas fashioned the original Star Wars as a potential standalone with an ending of its own because at the time the future of Star Wars was very much in doubt. When it became a smash success and a sequel was guaranteed he was able to leave The Empire Strikes back on a cliffhanger because the third and final film of the Trilogy was practically a sure thing. People in my generation grew up with the ability to watch the entire Star Wars Trilogy on VHS from one to the next without having to wait three years between movies. The Force Awakens tells a story yes, but it is also a setup for a guaranteed larger story that will span Episodes VIII and IX. As such, don't expect every question asked in The Force Awakens to be answered in The Force Awakens. Many things that are set forth in this one are to be continued and expanded in the forthcoming Sequels. Of course we don't have to wait three years now. More like one and a half for Episode VIII to be released in the summer of 2017.

Now, how about those characters? Story is important yes, but without likable and relatable characters it would all be empty talk. Thank heavens J.J. and his co-writers Lawrence Kasdan (another Star Wars alumnus from Empire and Jedi) and Michael Arndt, not to mention the casting directors, have come up all aces with a fantastic cast of fresh new faces, on top of OT veterans, to carry this universe forward. The old hands on deck, Harrison, Mark, and Carrie, are outstanding and very welcome sights. Harrison Ford is on fire and passionate in a way he has not been in a long time. He seems genuinely happy to be back and his camaraderie with fellow returnee Peter Mayhew's Chewbacca feels as if there really hasn't been a three decade break between the films. Ford is truly remarkable and he brings all of the necessary added wisdom (in some areas) and increased world weariness that the intervening years demand be there without sacrificing who Han Solo still is at his core. A charming badass with a soft heart he still tries to hide. Carrie Fisher is still beautiful as Princess Leia, who has shed the Princess moniker for the more apt General Organa since she is now more involved with the military. The scenes she shares with Ford are so sweet. I'm sure that was one of the biggest concerns of anyone going into this film was whether or not the chemistry between the old cast members would still be there. Well, it is and it's beautiful. There is a genuine tenderness to their interactions with each other and it ensures that the coming developments are all the more powerful and shattering. Mark Hamill is indeed in the movie, but I will not reveal any more than that because it is something you have to see for yourself. And yes, Anthony Daniels is back as C-3P0 and he is a hoot as always,  as is R2-D2.

However, it's the new characters that will really make or break this new Trilogy. Daisy Ridley is a simply luminous new find as Rey. She owns the screen whenever she is on it and makes certain that her character will never be known as a "damsel in distress". Rey is strong and resourceful on her own and more than capable of kicking butt when needed. John Boyega is exceptional as Finn. This is a wonderful new idea for a Star Wars film. Having a Stormtrooper, who are known to be brainwashed from youth to obey without remorse, realize the atrocities he is forced to be a part of and forsake the training that has been pounded into him from his early childhood is a great way to give the audience an insider's perspective on the film's bad guys. Finn is a very endearing character and you really come to care about him and root for his conscience to point him in the right direction. Boyega nails every nuance and gives a fully committed and lively performance. Oscar Isaac as ace pilot Poe Dameron is yet another home run for J.J. and crew. Isaac brings a genuine lovable warmth and assuredness to Poe that makes him instantly ingratiating and worthy of our rooting interest. His relationships with both BB-8 and Finn are beautiful highlights. Speaking of BB-8, that little droid is a badass. He is PERFECT! Perfect I say. The little "basketball" or "soccer ball" or "volley ball", as some have no doubt called him after seeing him in the previews, steals virtually every scene he is in. He is adorable, but never cloying or sappy. He's got an attitude that gives R2's a run for his mechanical bolts and he fits in seamlessly with the three leads. I want one. That is all.

Well, that is our three new good guys, but what about the bad guys? Well, Adam Driver as powerful and deadly Dark Sider Kylo Ren? Outstanding work. Driver does indeed find all of the right ways to make his villain someone we can genuinely fear and yet at the same time feel for. Ren's motivations for the things he does are slowly unraveled throughout the film and Driver hits every note to make for a bad guy that is as desperately torn up and conflicted as he is fearsomely savage. Domhnall Gleeson is General Hux and delivers his role with all of the vein popping intensity that it requires and he is very good at it. Gwendoline Christie is Captain Phasma, a Stormtrooper Officer, and she is also quite good in her brief screen time. It will be very interesting to see if she shows up in the future. And finally there is Supreme Leader Snoke who is played in Motion Capture by famed Gollum actor Andy Serkis. Here is one I cannot really praise yet because he really doesn't have enough time on screen, or do enough in the story here, to gauge whether or not his character is going to be worthwhile in the coming films. He's fine enough, but his role is limited for now, kind of like the Emperor before him.

The rest of the cast is comprised of small parts. Some destined to be expanded upon in the next two installments and some just background filler, but in the best way as they make the world of the film feel alive and real. The one small role that I just know has to be included in Episodes VIII and IX is Maz Kanata, motion captured and voiced by Lupita Nyong'o. Maz is a very promising character indeed and Nyong'o is good in the role. She's funny and she also possesses some information that will no doubt come in handy in the future.

It's a $200 million blockbuster film so surely it has to show that amount of money was spent on it right? Absolutely. The Force Awakens is a visual tour de force par excellence and every penny of that large budget is on the screen. The production design, location shooting, cinematography, and visual effects are all state of the art and as close to flawless as is possible. J.J. has become known for having a penchant for "lens flares". His two Star Trek films were peppered with them, but they never bothered me. It was an energetic look for those films. Some popped up in Super 8 too. In The Force Awakens J.J. and his cinematographer Dan Mindel, who worked together previously on M:I-3 and the first two Star Trek reboot films, have reigned the flares in for the largest part so as to more faithfully mirror the look of the Original Trilogy. Their work is, in a word, gorgeous. The Force Awakens is a beautifully shot movie with great camera work and lighting taking full advantage of the locations chosen for filming whether they be soundstage or actual locations across the globe. The harsh desert environs of Jakku give Tatooine a run for its money even and J.J. and Dan capture everything with striking clarity and precision while also embracing some of the flaws inherent in shooting 35mm film with Anamorphic lenses. The production design of the sets is also outstanding. Rick Carter, a veteran of such film classics as Jurassic Park and Forrest Gump, and Darren Gilford (Tron Legacy and Oblivion) have outdone themselves in crafting environments that all at once recall the old while whole heartedly ushering in the new. A beautiful balance was struck throughout. The visual effects of Industrial Light & Magic under the supervision of Roger Guyett are all top of the line and seamless. All of these elements come together to ensure that The Force Awakens is the best looking Star Wars film yet. Really how could it not be with the current technological advances and money on its side?

Now what would a Star Wars film be without music? Well, J.J. has gone and done it by luring the illustrious John Williams back for another shot at giving a musical voice to the "galaxy far, far away".   It's a fine score to be sure and it fits the film without detracting from it or calling necessary attention to itself. However, there is one area that it, sadly, kind of falls short in. Namely, it does sort of fail to find new themes that are as memorable for the new characters as the old themes are for the older characters. The old themes are there and they are still as gorgeous as always, but we might have indeed expected another groundbreaker like the scores for A New Hope and The Empire Strikes Back. What we get is a fine score, but it does sort of lack an identity of its own. Of course, John Williams is 83 years old. He has contributed so many classic film scores to the world of cinema that I will not strike this against him at all. How could I? He came back to a series that he helped launch and has delivered a good score for a new film within that series. Once again, maybe the next two installments will take what was started here and expand and enrich it.

So, Star Wars Episode VII - The Force Awakens is not just a great Star Wars film, it is a great film period. It has everything a film like this needs to succeed and succeed it does with aplomb to spare. J.J.'s can set put his worry to rest and breathe again. He has now successfully revitalized THREE major film series in less than a decade and made it seem so deceptively easy. It can't be easy. Mission Impossible is one thing, but with two icons like Star Wars and Star Trek and their veritable oceans of fans frothing at the mouth and ready to tear into anyone who might conceivably screw up what they perceive as "their" series it is truly remarkable that J.J. has kept as cool as he has. My love for the Star Wars film Saga is huge. I have recently had an epiphany, after watching the whole Saga again from Episode I to Episode VI in sequence, wherein I recognize that Star Wars represents EVERYTHING I love about movies as well as the kind of movies I love. Great stories that take me to other worlds where the only limit is how far I can imagine, great characters that I can truly come to love and care for as if they were real flesh and blood people and be emotionally invested in their fates, and just amazing worlds of wonder and creativity that excite my eyes and my mind and my heart. Star Wars has it all and The Force Awakens is a very welcome and wonderful new addition to the Saga. The Star Wars Universe has literally limitless potential for exploration on film and now it seems we will finally see that exploration take place before our gratefully wonder filled eyes. It is indeed a great time to be a movie lover.

5/5

Review written by Eric Spearman on 12/19/2015

Hello and Welcome to my humble Blog.

Well. This is my first ever Blog. I've literally never done this before and I don't know what to expect out of it except a vent for my love of film entertainment. As a disclaimer I will state that my tastes and views will not be popular with everyone who considers themselves film fans and I have made peace with this as should you. With that said, I solemnly promise to never berate, belittle, or otherwise castigate anyone who disagrees with my personal opinions. That is all they are. And when it comes to films, no matter how much I love them, they do not hold life and death stakes and are therefore not worth fighting over like rabid dogs.

Art is subjective in nature. It touches individuals on different planes. No two people will ever view any artistic achievement the exact same way. They may share a lot in common yes, but there will always be differences. I welcome differences and I hope you will do the same. Be civil about it. And try not to let other opposing views get you down. Likewise if you have an opposing view yourself you should never seek to start an argument over it.

I love movies for one simple reason. They are an escape from the daily grind of life. Mini vacations that only consume a couple of hours at a time. I do not go to films for realism. I can walk outside for that. As such, you will not read me in here nitpicking apart every logic leap or flaw in any film. No film is perfect and they never will be. Fantasy is my biggest passion. The bigger the flight the better. I may not have seen as many films in my lifetime as some other film fans out there, but I do not believe that makes me any less a lover of film than they. I don't see the need to watch everything that comes out. If it looks good to me I will see it. Likewise if it does not look good I really don't see the need in wasting precious time on something that looks like it will suck outright. Some may view this as an aversion to risk taking, but I see it as being more calculated in the risks I take. I know what I like and I stick to those parameters most times, but every once in a while I may branch out if the call is strong enough to warrant me doing so.

So, to wrap up this introduction to my Blog and what I want out of it... I want a place where I can let loose with my feelings. A place where I can express my passion for the art and pure entertainment of film. I will post on here when I feel I have something worth posting. I will review films I see, both old and new, and I will give my honest personal and entirely subjective opinion on them and why I either loved, liked, shrugged, disliked, or hated any film. I welcome others with the love for the escape that cinema provides to follow me and discuss with me why we love what we do. I hope this will be beneficial for others as well as myself, but I do believe it will benefit me to have a place of my own to really bust out and say what I think and feel. So, welcome to Eric's Filmic Ramblings. I hope you enjoy your visit and come back soon.

Eric Spearman

P.S. My first review post will be either tomorrow or Sunday. Starting this party off with a bang, Star Wars: The Force Awakens. I watched it last night at a Thursday early showing at 10:05, but I will see it again tomorrow and Sunday to really let it sink in and work up my thoughts to their fullest without any outside influences I hope, though if I do let some other ideas creep in from outside sources it will only be because I agree with them. Or not and I just have to say why.