Black Panther, directed by Ryan Cogler, written by Ryan Cogler and Joe Robert Cole, 2h 14 min
You have undoubtedly heard about Black Panther. It’s had ecstatic reviews (97% on Rotten Tomatoes) and spectacular box office (over $1 billion worldwide in just four weeks.) But is it a “good” movie? Is there more to it than just the hype?
Yes and Yes. A couple of years ago I swore off superhero movies, but I’m glad to have broken that vow for Black Panther. Unlike most of what rolls out of the Marvel Comics stable, this movie has a plot, rather than merely a series of violent CGI battles. It has characters with a depth that challenges the actors, and they respond brilliantly. In most superhero movies you merely root for good to triumph over evil. This one actually gives you something to think about.
On a very superficial level this is an origin story – like Kal-El coming from Krypton and Bruce Wayne descending from his mansion. In this case, it’s how a prince ascends to the throne of his father and assumes the same super powers that make him the Black Panther, king of the technologically-advanced country of Wakanda.
But thankfully it’s not that simple. By tradition Prince T’Challa (Chadwick Bozeman) only becomes the Black Panther if he can defeat any challengers in combat – without his special powers. There is only one challenger and in a touch-and-go battle, T’Challa, not surprisingly, wins. But in the first twist that separates Black Panther from the rest of its category, T’Challa doesn’t immediately kill off his opponent. He shows a refreshing mercy, making him even more beloved by his people.
The key to Wakanda’s technological superiority is its infinite supply of vibranium. In protecting this key resource the country has shut itself off from the rest of the world and made it a target for thieves wishing to exploit the magic mineral. T’Challa goes after an evil soldier of fortune who has stolen a small cache of vibranium. The thief's partner is Erik Killmonger (Michael B. Jordan), a cousin of T’Challa, who is determined to replace him and become the next Black Panther. Their struggles dominate the second half of the movie, culminating in a spectacular battle in the vibranium-powered train tunnels that will make any subway rider envious.
The ethos of Wakanda is democracy and inclusion. The Panther is only given his power by the will of all the people. While led by a man, the country’s top military officers and fiercest warriors are women. And most obviously this is a nation of black men and women that is more advanced technologically, socially, even ethically than the rest of the world.
These embodiments of real-world movements – Black pride, female empowerment – are saved from being politically-correct Hollywood hooey by the plausible and serene life in this mythical land. How the magnanimous T’Challa handles his failures and successes is the key to what makes Black Panther unique. Defeating his opponent is only incidental. The sincere goal is to make a better world. At first his vision is limited to his own country, but T’Challa eventually realizes that Wakanda’s physical and moral resources should be shared with the whole world.
Beyond it’s uplifting message, Black Panther is damn fine movie making. The beauty and technological marvels of Wakanda are exquisitely rendered with state-of-the-art cinematography. The cast, led by Chad Bozeman, is memorable. Bozeman combines mastery, dignity and vulnerability to craft a real person, and that's very different from your ordinary superhero. Lupita Nyong’o is convincing as both his chief strategist and love interest. Letitia Wright plays T’Challa’s irreverent sister and, as his weapon master (reminiscent of M in the Bond series), she steals every scene she is in. Old pros Angela Bassett, Forest Whittaker and Martin Freeman make sure that even the minor characters are more than one-dimensional.
The whole effect is dazzling. Finally we have a blockbuster that is more than violence and special effects. Black Panther is a movie for its time, fighting the nativist, atavistic tendencies that are dividing people and isolating countries.
Grade: A
Red Sparrow, written by Justin Haythe, directed by Francis Lawrence, 2h 19min
Only 27 and already a Best Actress Oscar winner, Jennifer Lawrence is a guaranteed draw no matter the role. In Red Sparrow, she shines as always, but this film, while exciting, is uneven and, at times, confusing so you are distracted from her strong performance.
Plus the film should come with a warning that is not covered by its R rating from the Motion Picture Association. There are two torture scenes so violent and gratuitous that you may want to think twice about seeing it if you can’t stomach that type of thing. It’s too bad that the torture leaves such a lasting impression; otherwise Red Sparrow is a spy thriller that keeps you guessing and engaged right to the end.
Along with caring for her invalid mother, Dominika (Lawrence) is a prima ballerina with the Bolshoi Ballet. When her co-lead trips and breaks her leg, her dance career is over. She quickly discovers that he and her understudy planned the fall. She reveals her darker, vengeful side by brutally attacking them.
Since she loses the Bolshoi’s health insurance that pays for her mother’s medical care, she becomes desperate. Her uncle Ivan (Matthias Schoenaerts), a ruthless spy, offers to help if she seduces an out-of-favor oligarch so he can be blackmailed. She reluctantly agrees. As he has sex with her, she is horrified when he is garroted by the scary assassin Simyonov (Sergej Onopko), covering her in blood.
Ivan threatens to expose her part in the murder unless she enrolls in the Sparrow School which trains men and women to use their beauty to entrap enemies of the state. The school is under the command of General Korchoi (Jeremy Irons), who now monitors her every move. The forbidding Matron (sixties beauty, now solid character actor Charlotte Rampling) drills the recruits.
Her training culminates in the humiliation of a rival during a class. When she strips and dares him to have sex with her, he tries but fails in frustration. Lawrence has made much of her first nude scene, but it is brief and only from the waist up. The nudity is way less shocking than the violence to come.
After this long prologue, we finally get to the essential story line. Dominika, now a full-fledged Sparrow, is tasked with doing whatever it takes to get CIA agent Nate Nash (Joel Edgerton) to reveal the name of his Russian source.
In the spirit if not the subtlety of a le Carré novel, Red Sparrow’s plot is elaborate, and you are sometimes left wondering who’s on what side. There are subplots and conversations that help explain what’s going on, but they feel discursive and belabored. If the movie were shorter, the suspense would be even tauter.
And the run up to the surprising conclusion is marred by the torture of Dominika, then Nick. There had to be ways to convey their extreme situations without subjecting the audience to what has been described as “torture porn.”
Despite that, Red Sparrow is a provocative spy thriller. If only the director understood that adapting what’s on the page to film requires some visual discretion.
Grade: B- (It would have been a B+ without the torture.)
Game Night, directed by John Francis Daley and Jonathon Goldstein, written by Mark Perez, 1h 40min
For all its contrivances Game Night is surprisingly entertaining. They don’t make many screwball comedies any more, but this one qualifies and lives up to the best of that genre.
After-dinner games are unavoidable, serving the distinct purpose of filling time after a meal is done and conversation lags. They can run the gamut from tedious charades to the slightly more cerebral Trivial Pursuit or even bridge. Currently in vogue are elaborate murder mysteries with the dinner guests playing roles and following arcane clues.
Annie (Rachel McAdams) and Max (Jason Bateman) are obsessed gamers and pose greater and greater challenges at frequent get-togethers with their friends. Max’s older brother Brooks (Kyle Chandler), who he has always envied, dazzles the group when he pulls up one night in his cherry red Corvette Stingray. He soon invites them all over to his house the following week for what he promises will be their most memorable game night ever. That's an understatement!
At Brooks’ place the game begins with a supposed FBI agent furnishing them with dossiers to track down a gang of kidnappers. The prize? Brooks’s Stingray that Max has always coveted.
Things immediately go awry when two thugs crash the party and assault Brooks. He desperately insists it’s not part of the game, but Annie, Max and the others don’t believe him.
The chaos and cross plots that result are diverting, and the pace and length of the movie are just right. McAdams and Bateman are the screwballs that make the movie tick. They are nicely backed up by a supporting cast that you will recognize, but can't name.
Nothing extraordinary here – just a fun plot, good acting and seamless execution. You could do worse for a late winter afternoon or evening.
Grade: B
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