Exodus: Gods and Kings

First Hit:  I couldn’t help but compare Cecil B. DeMille’s “The Ten Commandments” with this film and in many ways this film is more touching and it was also very slow at times.

This is a long and grandiose type film.

It does its best to create characters we can either like or dislike. Ramses (Joel Edgerton) has the look and feel of the antagonist but there is something missing and I couldn’t put my finger on it. Christian Bale plays Moses the adopted brother (of sorts) of Ramses both of whom are guided by Ramses father Seti (John Turturro).

Viceroy Hegep (Ben Mendelsohn) overhears that Moses is really a Hebrew and tells Ramses. Moses is ousted from the Egyptian royal family and finds his roots. He comes back to Egypt to free his people (600,000 Hebrews) and lead them home. Guided by a young boy, who represents the almighty, he witnesses the plagues and then leads the slaves through the Red Sea and to their ancestral home. This film was slow most of the time.

The 3-D version of the plagues was very good and it surpasses the previous film in realistic spectacle. Funny that I still liked the previous version of the parting of the Red Sea because the way the walls of the water jumped up. However, this film’s version is far more realistic and was very good as well. I don't think this film will do very well at the box office because the story telling here just isn’t very compelling.

Edgerton as Ramses is effective but doesn't carry the energy to make us want to find him the villain he's suppose to be. Bale does his best in this role and at times is really good, but the material slows him down. Turturro is really good as Seti because he carries the air of supremacy and intelligence perfectly. Mendelson in a smallish role is fabulous. He makes the most of this part. There were other big name actors in the film but their minor roles are not worth mentioning. Adam Cooper, Bill Collage, Jeffrey Caine, and Steven Zaillian wrote this over full script. Ridley Scott directed this overly full script. The best part was the effectiveness of creating great plagues.

Overall:  This was a long film that only begins to pick up during the plagues.

John Wick

First Hit:  The best thing is how Wick handles a gun and there’s lots of that in this film.

Wick (Keanu Reeves) is a retired hitman assassin for a Russian mob. He retired because he fell in love and then his wife dies. Because it was long-term illness, after her death she pre-arranged to have a puppy sent to John. After a few days of dealing with a puppy, he becomes totally engaged and loves this dog.

Iosef Tarasov (Alfie Allen), son of John’s former boss Viggo (Michael Nyqvist) wants John’s car and decides to rob him by invading his house, killing his dog and stealing his car. This does not go over well and the rest of the film is about Wick getting revenge.

The plot, although weak, is an interesting way to make Wick have a soft heart while giving him a vehicle to kill everyone in Viggo’s organization and he does. The best part was the choreography of the shooting scenes, Wick is a master at movement and shooting and Reeves voice, body language and movement makes it work.

Reeves makes this script and film work with the aloofness that comes naturally to him. His body awareness and abilities, probably gained from the “Matrix” series, are an asset here. Allen is perfect as the spoiled, unthoughtful, and stupid son of the Russian Mafioso. Nyqvist is excellent as the head of the mob, by being cynical, irreverent, and mean. Willem Dafoe as Reeves friend Marcus is very good at having Wick’s back. I also thought Adrianne Palicki was strong as a woman assassin who wanted to cash in on the price on Wick’s head. Derek Kolstad wrote an OK screen play which tried to create a backstory but it was all about killing lots of people. David Leitch and Chad Stahelski co-directed the film and despite a weak plot, the execution of choreographed killing scenes worked out well.

Overall:  It was entertaining but is was also simply a vehicle for guns and killings.

Fury

First Hit:  Powerful story about how war will change people.

War is a tough place to learn about who you are in relation to the people you work with and an enemy that wants to kill you.

Norman (Logan Lerman) has been assigned to the Fury, a tank led by Don “Wardaddy” Collier (Brad Pitt). His crew of Boyd “Bible” Swan (Shia LaBeouf), Trini “Gordo” Garcia (Michael Pena), and Jon “Coon-Ass” Travis (Jon Bernthal), have been together for years and through thick and thin. With much sadness they recently lost their assistant driver/gunner.

Norman was supposed to be a clerk typist and now he’s been ordered into Wardaddy’s tank that is heading to the front line. He tells Don he won’t shoot anyone and that he'd rather die than to kill.  But as the team thrives as a group, he must learn how to kill.

The tank crew is a family that depends on each other and this film exemplifies the positives and difficulties of this tank family life. The close quarters of the tank is made larger here by shooting one person at a time but you never forget that this is a close quarters tank.  Wardaddy is clearly in charge of his crew and he has a single focus to do his part against the Germans.

The pall of war is magnificently expressed in the color of each shot, whether it is inside or outside the tank. The dark haze of daylight exemplified the feelings of oppression and sadness that death brings.

Pitt is really strong in his performance of control over his crew, yet allowing and creating space for his guys to be who they are. The edges of this were defined in the scene where they had met two women in a building and building intense conversation and over the meal the women had prepared. Lerman was a revelation in his transformation to someone who would finally say; “best job I ever had”. LaBeouf was very strong as the guy who could quote scripture and drive the hell out of the tank. Pena was very good as Gordo and gunner. Bernthal was scary good as the guy always on the edge of sanity. David Ayer wrote and directed this film. The writing was as strong as his clear direction to fully take the audience deep into the world of a tank and the crew.

Overall:  Although war films are not my favorite genre, the characters elevated this film to a very high place.

The Equalizer

First Hit:  Satisfying film with powerful acting by Denzel Washington in a story that has a slow burn buildup to the inevitable.

Robert McCall (Washington) is a quiet mentor to the people he’s around at the home building supply store where he works. He rarely sleeps at night, reads a lot, and has very specific behavior patterns that he uses to keep his life intact.

From the beginning you have the sense that McCall has a history, one of which he’s not proud, one where he was one of the best, and he’s sad without his wife. He shows up to his peers at work by helping them eat right and supports them to live their dreams. He also rights the wrongs to his friends and he does this with cool calculation.

You see early on he’s an expert at killing and making things right. He gets into a conflict with the Russian mob through late night café meetings with Teri (Chloe Grace Moretz) who wants to be a singer but works as a prostitute to some hardened Russians. When they hurt her, McCall becomes the man who will right this wrong all the way to the top.

His main protagonist Teddy (Marton Csokas) is good for this film as he is as self-assured as McCall is competent. They are a good matchup and the way this film delivers this adversarial relationship is great.

Washington is so clearly perfect in this role. I cannot think of another actor that could have pulled this off as well as he did. Moretz is excellent as the girl who portrays both protective strength and childlike vulnerability. Marton Csokas was perfect as the Russian mob enforcer and guy that fixes problems for the head of the gang. David Harbour (as corrupt policeman, Masters) does a good job of being a hard ass corrupt jerk. Richard Wenk and Michael Sloan wrote a very strong script that allowed us to know Washington’s character not through words but through actions. Antoine Fuqua did an excellent job of directing this action film. My only criticism of this film from a director’s point of view is that it was a little long.

Overall:  Although long, I enjoyed and was totally engaged with this film.

The Maze Runner

First Hit:  Possibilities existed but were wasted in a poorly written script with a lack of background to give the story context.

I get why the pre-teens and teenagers in the audience clapped at the end of the showing I attended. There was enough there that would appeal to a younger audience.

Young attractive actors, fighting against an unknown master, fear of the unknown, and kids their age being left to fend for themselves. There was a “Lord of the Flies” sense about it, yet where Lord focused on change and how it happens, here we have little substance and even less character development.

However, what I really struggled with was context. Even at the end when you get some context, and there wasn’t enough good information that would make me want to see the sequel (pointedly announced by the storyline). There is little information to make this story intellectually interesting and it doesn’t develop much in the way of curiosity.

There are moments where I could have been attentive but it faded away as lightweight fare with a weak script. From a filming standpoint, it also could have been more interesting by giving more in-depth views of the square area they lived in and I would have enjoyed more maze scenes where the boys were figuring out the maze.

Dylan O’Brien (as Thomas) was a reasonable main character but the script and story wasn’t there for development. Aml Ameen (as Alby) was the leader of this community because he was the first person sent to the area and as such commanded respect. He carried this load fairly well. Ki Hong Lee (as a runner) was OK, but again I think the story line was too weak to support good acting. Blake Cooper (as the youngish Chuck) was one of the better characters in the entire film – there was a realness to him that made it work. Thomas Brodie-Sangster (as Newt) was good, but again more could have been done to create a character. Will Poulter (as Gally) was the most dynamic person in the film but his role was predictable. Lastly, Kaya Scodelario (as Teresa) - the only girl, had a limited role and was OK. She brought some fun to the film at her arrival. Noah Oppenheim and Grant Pierce Myers wrote this poorly conceived and executed script. Wes Ball did a poor job of directing this poorly imagined film.

Overall:  It was bored most of the time although there were moments of interest when the maze was featured.