Boyhood

Welcome to another episode of Lights....Camera....Popcorn!

Today's review is Boyhood.

Written & Directed by Richard Linklater.

Review #258

MPAA Rating: Rated R for language including sexual references, and for teen drug and alcohol use.

Run Time: 165 min

Hulk Spoils Hollywood Podcast Page

Cast

Ellar Coltrane...Mason

Patricia Arquette...Mom

Ethan Hawke...Dad

Lorelei Linklater...Samantha


Making movies is at times a painstaking process. So much goes into a production that directors literally spend years putting their passion on screen. It takes an amazing amount of attention to detail and dedication. With the way studios breathe down director's necks it's amazing that films get made at all. Knowing all of this now take into consideration the amount of attention and dedication that's needed to make a film that took 12 years to film.

That's how long it took to make Boyhood and there's no question....It was WORTH THE WAIT!
Plot

The life of a young man, Mason, from age 5 to age 18.

Now before I begin I want to put to rest a "friendly" debate I had with someone who dared to categorize my praise of this film a faint because it wasn't the first film to take this long to make. Anyone and I do mean ANYONE that challenges this film with Avatar as an example of an exhaustive, time consuming production needs to be educated and QUICKLY! 

I do concede that Avatar is a labor of love for James Cameron. HOWEVER! There's NO WAY on god's green earth that overrated cartoon can be put in this film's class. Did it take Cameron a better part of 15 years to make? Absolutely, and what did he do with that time? He made The Last of The Mohicans in outer space filled with computer generated characters that exhibited more life that the LIVING cast.

Boyhood goes so far beyond the concept of "taking your time" that it toes the line between a scripted film and documentary. In fact this film can be properly classified as a docudrama.
To follow the growth and maturity of a child from age 5 to 18 is an ambitious undertaking that requires a lot of attention to continuity. A lot has to go right for this project to be pulled off and for Linklater, things appeared to have gone well. It helped that he was surrounded by some pretty strong actors. Ethan Hawke and Patricia Aquette headline the group of adults that form around the lives of Mason and his sister Samantha. The film chronicles the strained and distant relationship between dad and mom as she tries to raise two kids on her own. Mom does all the heavy lifting and dad swoops in and unconditionally receives the kids love because he's the absentee parent. As I was watching this film I began to wonder if this scenario was going to play out throughout the whole film.

Then this scene happened that changed everything.
The scene pictured looks pretty harmless right? For the most part it was. Dad spending some quality time knocking down some pins with the kids. Then comes a life lesson moment that turned this film into something more important than just a presentation of watching a boy grow up. At one point Mason complains that he bowled better when the bumpers were up on the lane. Dad explains to him that bumpers are cheating and that it's much more rewarding to roll a strike without them. Trust me, as a bowler for over 25 years I know. Mason continues to sulk and looks like he wants to give up on the game when dad gets frustrated and tells him.....(I'm paraphrasing here) "Life doesn't give you bumpers, you have to learn to do things on your own." His point was that just because bowling seemed easier the last time he used the bumpers that now he has to adjust without them. Which is a perfect metaphor for life.

That small line turned this film into a true coming of age story for Mason.
Boyhood does more than just follow the growth of Mason. It chronicles the growth of everyone around him. From his mom, dad to his sister as well. This film has garnered critic acclaim for Ellar Coltrane's performance as Mason and rightfully so. However there is a player in this film that deserves just as much credit and possibly more.

Her name is Lorelei Linklater as Samantha.
From the first moment she steps on screen doing a hysterical impression of Britney Spears to annoy Mason, Samantha goes toe to toe with Mason at every turn. Linklater's performance is just as compelling. Not just because we saw her grow up at the same time as Mason. It's because she plays off him the way an older sibling would in any family structure. Then in certain moments Linklater gets to shine by acting exactly how a young girl should. Bratty, annoying, disrespectful, selfish, all the things that teenage girls are when they think they know everything. This comes out masterfully by Linklater and ramps up the drama and intrigue of this film one hundred fold. Linklater provides so much balance between her and Mason that you could make a strong case for this film to change it's title from Boyhood to Childhood.
Several things happen to Mason, Sam and Mom that shape the course of their lives and as Mason continued to age he began to develop a very annoying personality. It was very lackadaisical, not a care in the world mindset that really got to me. I was on his side for most of this film until he hit high school and started this attitude and then it hit me like a ton of bricks. How can a boy learn to be a man when there isn't one around to guide him. The father figures that he collected along the way were people you didn't want him to emulate and his real father was Persona Non Grata for most of his adolescent life. I should have caught this sooner but I was so annoyed by Mason's demeanor that it blinded me to the reality of his situation.

This speaks highly of Coltrane's performance.
As the film draws to it's close, Mason begins to find his footing and shed his s**t on life attitude and when he gets to college you finally see where his head is at and where he could be going. It was the perfect point in his life to finish this journey and it ended at the most pitch perfect moment.
Here, Mason is hanging out with some friends he just met at school and this conversation he has with this girl was poignant. The girl asks him about the saying "seize the moment" and how it's the other way around that the moment seizes them.

College freshman shouldn't be this deep.

The point is that Mason in his mind has finally found someone that shares similar mindsets and philosophies. The bond they begin to build is clear as day and just like that....

Cut to black.

Brilliant closure point for a film that pushes the envelop at almost 3 hours. Having said that, Boyhood doesn't play like that. It's as similar as Blue Is the Warmest Color. Read review HERE. Boyhood isn't as erotically or emotionally charged as Blue is but the film does have a parallel in that both leads explore their maturity and adulthood over a period of time.

Regardless, Boyhood is a cinematic achievement that requires your viewing. Take the time to witness the journey of a boy to man story.

It's worth it.

On the 5 star scale. Boyhood gets 4 stars with a "Worth Every Penny!" recommendation.

That's a wrap for today.

Until Next Episode...."I'll Save You A Seat!"

"D"

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

Welcome to another episode of Lights....Camera....Popcorn!

Today's review is Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

Directed by Jonathan Liebesman.

Written by Josh Applebaum, Andre Nemec & Evan Daughtery.

Based on the "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" characters created by Kevin Eastman & Peter Laird.

Review #257

MPAA Rating: Rated PG-13 for sci-fi action violence.

Run Time: 101 min

Hulk Spoils Hollywood Podcast Page

Cast

Megan Fox...April O'Neil

Will Arnett...Vernon Fenwick

William Fichtner...Eric Sacks

Alan Ritchson...Raphael

Noel Fisher...Michelangelo

Pete Ploszek...Leonardo

Johnny Knoxville...Leonardo (voice)

Jeremy Howard...Donatello

Danny Woodburn...Splinter

Tony Shalhoub...Splinter (voice)

Tohoru Masamune...Shredder

Whoopi Goldberg...Bernadette Thompson


Michael Bay.

The name makes my skin turn green. This hack has been responsible for some reprehensible films. Pearl Harbor, Bad Boys II and let's not forget the Transformers series. My biggest problem with Bay's films is his incessant need to inject street humor into scenes that don't need or want them. He tries to be "down" when in reality he's distancing himself from serious movie goers. Need proof? No problem.

Take a look at this picture.
Those two robots were in Transformers: Revenge of the fallen. Click HERE to read review. They spent the entire film spouting out dated hip hop jargon and references that made no sense for any character to say let alone a transforming alien robot. Bay took it even further by giving the green one buck teeth with a gold cap on the right tooth.

Are you F***KING KIDDING ME!

So fast forward several years later.

Now that he's eviscerated any fond memories geeks my age had watching the Transformers. Bay and his production house Platinum Dunes have set their sights on another popular franchise that unlike Transformers had already made it to the silver screen.

The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

For the record. I made it clear to anyone who asked that I was not going to see this film. Then movie boredom set in and I had the good fortune of having a movie gift card on hand so I figured why not. It's a free film and who knows maybe I'll be surprised.

The final verdict is this. It's not bad but it's not good either.

Plot
A group of mutated warriors face off against an evil kingpin who wants to take over New York.
The first thing you have to know about this movie is aside from everyone questioning why it's being made but then again, that's the same attitude reboots/remakes always get. There were a flurry of rumors that teased the turtles weren't turtles at all. Instead they were going to be aliens. This sent the geek word into a frenzy. The vitriol was so hot that almost everyone involved with the production had to go public with a comment denouncing the rumor. My personal opinion is that the film was always going to go in the alien direction and was forced to switch things up after the torrential backlash the production was getting. This is probably why the film was also delayed as long as it was. I'm sure some hefty rewrites were needed to get the script in line which begs the question, if they had to go back to the drawing board....

Why was the script so hollow?
The biggest problem with the script is revolving the story around April O'neil. Why is that a problem? Just look at the picture. Need I say more? Megan Fox is an ATROCIOUS actress that has no business being in any films. Her brainless, wandering "performance" just kills any momentum this film has and there wasn't much of it. The idea of making April the focal point of the story wasn't bad. The gross error in judgement was who was cast to play her. The next problem is the lack of depth and explanation of the foot clan. The film begins with some exposition about how the foot clan are terrorizing the city and nobody can stop them. This is exactly similar to the original film with the exception that the police were at least present. Not once do you see a cop or any type of law enforcement when the foot attacks. The script has more problems so no need to get into them. I'll dive into the one thing that I did enjoy from this film and that's

The Turtles.
If there was one thing these guys got right it was the stars of the show. The character designs were over complicated but what else do you expect from a Michael Bay influenced film. What the producers got right were the personality traits of the ninja four. Leonardo was the stoic "leader" voice by Johnny Knoxville another miscasting. Michelangelo was the ever present wise ass that occasionally tossed out some pretty funny one liners. Raphael who was the show stealer was the tough guy who has a chip on his shoulder and Donatello was the brain who had the least amount of dialogue and things to do. Not sure why the balance was off but when the four of them were together either in cahoots or combat they were the turtles I fell in love with a long time ago.
Another character that I felt they nailed was The Shredder. His backstory was clouded non explanation but his look and fighting prowess was an serious upgrade from the previous films version of the villain. A very nice introductory scene showcases this very well executed change. You truly felt that this guy was a force to be reckoned with and was going to be a tough challenge for the Turtles. Again, his design was a bit over complicated. It's tough to believe that Shredder would feel any pain from a punch or kick covered in all that armor. The suit also rendered the turtles weapons moot since Leo's katana's, Raph's sai's, Mikey's nunchucks and Donny's bo staff were never going to penetrate that metal. This made the final fight less enjoyable. There was an opportunity to showcase some impressive martial arts and instead we were treated to the same shaky cam, over sped, frenetic sequences that waste any integrity the stunt team had in putting together the fights in the first place.

I was able to get past it because I know what great martial arts films look like and I knew going into this one that I wasn't going to get it.

That would have been a tremendous bonus.
Bottom line is Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles will not give you that nostalgic feeling from yesteryear. This is a blatant update to try to appeal to an audience that weren't around when the turtles first spent their nights leaping off rooftops stopping crime in the comics. Unfortunately with these audience driven reboots, storytelling is replaced with stupidity and ADHD pacing so what you get is a video game. With a sequel already announced the franchise will continue to churn out more spectacles. Hopefully a better writing team can come in and fill in the many blanks this film left behind.

I'm not betting on it but one can hope right?

On the 5 star scale. Teenage Ninja Turtles gets 1.5 stars with a "Netflix It!" recommendation.

That's a wrap for today.

Until Next Episode...."I'll Save You A Seat!"

"D"