Quick takes on 5 films

Not quite sure what to make of The Death of Dick Long. The filmmakers themselves didn’t know if it should be a comedy or a dark drama, and so it sort of fails at being both. The eponymous Dick and his two buddies Zeke and Earl are a trio of redneck friends in a garage band. After a night of drinking, drugs, and debauchery, we see Zeke and Earl dumping their buddy, who is bleeding profusely, in front of the hospital and then making a run for it. Dick does (obviously) end up dying, but the answer to what brought them to that point isn’t immediately clear. The two surviving friends do a really lousy job of covering their tracks, even to the point that the inept local police officers are still able to put two and two together (finally). The funny moments aren’t funny enough, and the dramatic moments aren’t believable enough, for this film to ever get anywhere worth really enjoying. I rather liked director Daniel Scheinert’s previous film, Swiss Army Man, and this one has a bit of that same zany, off-beat comedy, but it’s just not very good. ★½

I expected to not enjoy Jay and Silent Bob Reboot. Don’t get me wrong, growing up in the 90’s I loved Clerks, Mallrats, Chasing Amy, and Dogma as much as anyone, but watching those films now, the humor doesn’t really hold up. But you know, the newest film isn’t half bad, if you are a fan that is. Watching it was like slipping on an old hat; worn, tired, but comfortable. Even the actors themselves joke that this movie is a reboot of Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back from nearly 20 years ago. The marijuana-loving duo are headed to California to stop a reboot of that film from 2001 being made again, and have adventures along the way, with all of Kevin Smith’s cast of regulars back for more shenanigans. The film is chuck full of familiar and new faces, all poking fun at themselves and the filmmakers, and the viewer really feels like they are in on the jokes too. Some of the best jokes are saved for some of Kevin’s failed movies, so it’s nice that he can be as self deprecating as he is. If you aren’t a Kevin Smith fan, you’ll hate this movie, but if you are, give it a chance, because you’ll probably laugh more than you’ll expect to. It’s no great “cinema,” but it doesn’t try to be, and sometimes that’s ok. ★★★

I also enjoyed Terminator: Dark Fate a whole heck of a lot more than anticipated. Heralded as the return of director James Cameron, who did the first two films so many years ago, this one is a direct sequel to Terminator 2, and ignores the 3 movies that came after that one. Maybe those films lowered my expectations, but this one was great. After a short intro that shows a Terminator was indeed able to kill John Connor shortly after the events of T2, we fast forward to present day and the arrival of two newcomers to our time from the future. One is the newest killing machine, Rev-9 (Gabriel Luna), and the other is a cybernetically enhanced human named Grace (Mackenzie Davis in a badass role). Even though Sarah and John Connor halted the start of Skynet, the inevitable happened and robots (AI) still started a war with humans. In the new future, with John Connor dead, the new hero is the unborn child of a woman named Dani, so Rev-9, with some seriously cool new tricks, has been sent back to kill her and Grace has been sent back to protect. Sarah Connor (Linda Hamilton, reprising her role) also shows up to do her part. The film sounds like a reboot of its own, but it isn’t. It has a similar premise but feels fresh, and it is a wild ride from the get-go. ★★★½

Big Time Adolescence is much better than anticipated too. It co-stars two guys who we’ve seen before, but I believe this may be their first leading roles. Mo (Griffin Gluck) is a 16-year-old boy who seems to have a good head on his shoulders, except for the fact he hangs out with much older guys, who aren’t exactly role models. The main one of this group is Zeke (SNL’s Pete Davidson), a stoner ex-boyfriend of Mo’s sister. Zeke is in his early 20’s and is just floating through life. Mo’s parents urge him to hang out with people his own age, but Mo really looks up to Zeke, and that influence begins to show. First Zeke starts getting alcohol and drugs for a few people in school, but eventually builds to being the dealer for the entire school. Zeke’s relationship advice doesn’t exactly pan out well for Mo either. I love me a good coming-of-age film, and this one mostly hits in all the right places, even if it is a bit predictable as most in this genre are. Gluck is really good as Mo, a young man who, like most 16 year olds, just wants to be accepted, and Davidson is passable as Zeke. Davidson has the kind of personality that makes him feel endearing to viewers, which helps in a role like this, even if his acting chops aren’t quite there yet. The comparisons to Adam Sandler are inevitable, and like in Sandler’s early films, Davidson’s charisma creates entertainment, allowing the viewer to look past some shortcomings. Sandler was able to grow and show some more nuanced performances later on, and we’ll see if Davidson can do the same. Still, I liked the movie. ★★★½

Motherless Brooklyn is an old-school film noir with a sterling cast who seem perfect for their roles. It has the right music and feel and even the deadpan voiceover narration; except for some curse words, if it were in black and white, it could have come out in the 50’s and you’d never know it. It is about a private investigator, Lionel, who has tourette’s (unnamed for this era, but that’s what it is), but his ticks are forgiven by his office’s head, Frank, because Lionel can remember anything and everything he sees and hears. What he hears one day is a contentious discussion between Frank and some unknown visitors, and it leads to Frank being shot and killed. Lionel immerses himself in finding the culprits, but the rabbit hole takes him to corrupt politicians, seedy Harlem jazz nightclubs, and a fight over redevelopment of lower-middle-class housing which the city wants to clear out for new highways. It is a very good film, maybe not great but close, with some remarkable acting jobs by Edward Norton in the lead, as well as Bruce Willis, Alec Baldwin, Willem Dafoe, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Cherry Jones, and Michael K Williams, as well as a host of other recognizable faces. The good moments are really good, spellbinding in fact, but there are slow stretches which, while important to the mystery Lionel is trying to unravel, do seem to drag. ★★★