Iron Man 3 (3D)

First Hit:  Loved and enjoyed moments and was bored silly at what seemed to be a dumb premise – very uneven film.

The opening credits and set-up were interesting and I was hopeful of a witty well done film in the genre of Iron Man 1.

Robert Downey Jr. was perfect in 1 and in that film he set a high mark for the character. He’s always done his best to fulfill the scripts given to him in all these films.

In 3 we see Tony Stark (Iron Man) spend all his time tinkering, having odd flashes of anxiety, and in a deeper relationship with Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow). The unbecoming part of this story is, someone came up with a drug to increase a person’s strength and would also fix their physical issues (like a cut, missing limb, etc.) – yeah it sounds both interesting and stupid and that is exactly how this film is.

The product has problems, so if you have anger management issues, it is likely you will explode like a small thermonuclear device. The guy who is controlling all this Aldrich Killian (Guy Pearce), who doesn’t want the limelight of being the head terrorist so he hires someone to be the primary public figure and names him “The Mandarin” (Ben Kingsley).

Killian gets people hooked on the drugs properties and uses them as weapons against society in a terrorist fashion. What is he aiming at? Whoa, that is the issue; because control of the USA is unlikely in the way the plot unfolds. There is nothing in the story development that gives you the sense that this end goal would result in anything.

Yes a film with a “not well thought out plot”. All of this “stuff” (and that is what it is – just stuff) is a way for the director to create a pretense for Killian and Stark to have clashes all over the USA – some in California, Tennessee, Washington and NYC. In another piss poor equipment twist (made to be funny); was when a bus runs into one of the many Iron Man suits, it completely breaks apart, while in other scenes the another suit withstands 10 times the punishment of a bus hit and is unscratched. Which is it? Is the suit strong, or is it a plastic mock up?

The kid Stark works with Harley Keener (Ty Simpkins) is perfect to bring out other sides of Stark.

Downey Jr. is as always witty. It is unfortunate that the storyline is so poor that his witticisms and incredible acting abilities are wasted. Paltrow, although a key character, has a minor role but does what she can within the confines of the mediocre script. Pearce is ineffective at portraying a character wanting to control the USA. Simpkins is enjoyable and one of the better parts of the film. Kingsley is amusing as The Mandarin. Don Cheadle, reprising his familiar role as Colonel James Rhodes, enjoys his “War Machine” (“Iron Patriot”) suit and it comes across that way. Rebecca Hall as Maya Hansen (maker of the juice that screws people up) is OK but lacked believability that she would have created this juice, let alone sold out to Killian. Drew Pearce and Shane Black wrote a very mediocre script with more thoughtless holes than Swiss cheese. Shane Black got caught up with his own story and therefore directed a mediocre film. However, I will say that the 3D effects were very good because it only enhanced the film and didn’t make it the object of the film.

Overall:  This film ranks far below the original Iron Man.

At Any Price

First Hit:  A very strong film about family and the pressures of living up to one's own and others expectations.

Henry Whipple (Dennis Quaid) is a head of his family farm; his dad Cliff (Red West) is still alive and pressuring Henry to make the family farm work the way he wants it to work.

Henry has two sons Grant (Patrick Stevens) the older college football star and younger son Dean (Zac Efron) who wants to be a NASCAR driver not a farmer. Henry really wants Grant to take over the farm, but Grant graduates and decides to travel the world. The undying hope that Grant will return haunts Henry.

Dean is hard headed and hates farming and his Dad’s placating ways. Henry, screws around with his old high school sweetheart while his loyal wife bears the pain of knowing but loving Henry anyway. She confronts him in one scene and in the next she’s holding his hand making a great public appearance. It is all about what it looks like.

This is the heart and key of the film, is how one is scene in public. Henry could be seething in side but he’s quick with a smile that looks real and is real – to a point.

Dean meets his fear on the race track and becomes lost. When his father covers for him and supports him for one of his stupid actions, he becomes the next generation farmer.

There are other sub-stories in this film which integrate with the whole story, one being that what goes on in Middle America’s farms reflects what goes on in bug corporations as well.

Quaid is perfect in this role as his quick smile and eyes that light up with his smile, are perfect for the man who is use to putting on fronts. Efron is very good as the troubled young man. The only thing that didn’t fit wonderfully for me, was why he lost his ability to face the fear of driving. However, his shift from rebellious young son to the future family farm leader was very good. Kim Dickens as Henry’s wife Irene was excellent. She embodied the faithful loving wife while looking past her husband’s indiscretions. Maika Monroe was wonderful as Dean’s young girlfriend. Clancy Brown as Jim Johnson, Henry’s rival Liberty seed seller, was very good. Chelcie Ross was also very good as Henry’s seed washing accomplice. Ramin Bahrani wrote and directed this very strong film that may show up at next year’s awards ceremonies.

Overall:  This film has more under the hood than shown at first blush. It asks; what would you do for your family?

Mud

First Hit:  A well-crafted film with excellent performances.

Where “To the Wonder” tried to show love and didn’t speak about love, “Mud” evoked a story around what love can drive people to do or not do.

This film evoked the feeling of Arkansas, the difference between town people and river folk, and how love can confuse young and old alike. We’ve got two young boys Ellis (Tye Sheridan) and his close friend Neckbone (Jacob Lofland) finding a boat in a tree. It got there through one of the horrific storms that come through the south.

While exploring their new found treasure, they run into Mud (Matthew McConaughey) who has commandeered the boat for his own purposes. Listening to him talk you get a sense that he skirts the truth while embracing wives tales and superstitions when they serve his purpose. He convinces the boys he’s there to meet his love Juniper (Reese Witherspoon) whom he’s loved his whole life.

He’s also hiding out because he killed one of Juniper’s boyfriends for hitting her. Now the boyfriend’s family and police are after him for revenge. Ellis has an idealistic view of love and it is congruent with the devotion Mud has for Juniper. However his mom Mary Lee (Sarah Paulson) and dad, Senior (Ray McKinnon), are talking divorce and Ellis sees his life falling apart. He’s a strong willed kid and when he stops a guy from pushing a girl he likes by hitting him, he becomes enamored and hopes she like him. He and Mud connect in this way.

This film is not fast paced and, at times, I wanted it to make it go faster, but then I exhaled and let the film continue its elegant unfolding.

Sheridan was sublime by evoking strength, compassion and mindfulness. He was extraordinary. Lofland was equally superb and as a friend to Sheridan he was perfect. I would be surprised if I learned they are not real life friends as well. McConaughey was amazing. As his recent films have shown, he’s really choosing parts that work for him and that he can bring good things to the director of the film. Witherspoon is great in this role because it reminded me of the intensity and power of her early “Freeway” role. I loved her in that film and can still feel the intense scenes with Kiefer Sutherland. Paulson is really good and I loved her presence in the film as the woman struggling and needing to change her life. McKinnon is good, especially as the film moved on. Sam Shepard (as Tom Blankenship) is strong as Mud’s closest friend and surrogate dad. Michael Shannon (as Galen), Neckbone's uncle and caretaker was really good and it was good to see him in this role. Joe Don Baker has a minor and pivotal role as the father of the man Mud killed. Jeff Nichols wrote and directed this film with patience and a great eye for bringing out the south.

Overall:  Although slow at times – it was well worth it.

Pain and Gain

First Hit:  This film didn’t know what it wanted to be and I left wondering what the point was.

A film that has to tell you about 2/3 the way through that it is still a true story, means it didn’t do its job. It didn’t make it believable.

It was hard for me to believe that the real life weightlifters Daniel Lugo (played by Mark Wahlberg), Paul Doyal (played by Dwayne Johnson), and Adrian Doorbal (played by Anthony Mackie), would have seen themselves as comically stupid as these actors portrayed them to be. No matter how hard these actors tried to be serious in these roles, they exuded a humorous vein of the stupidity the real life characters couldn’t discern.

What the audience ends up with is some really funny stupidity scenes and the grossness of idiotic violence gone badly. Only Wahlberg seemed capable of portraying believable stupidity but only occasionally. These three guys are tired of their "just getting by existence" so they decide take all of Victor Kershaw’s (Tony Shalhoub) money and assets. T

hey eventually get the money and Victor, who survives the attempted killing by these goons. The cops don’t believe Victor’s story so he’s left to try to get his money back by himself. Then he happens to get ahold of a retired detective named Ed DuBois (Ed Harris) who believes him and begins to unravel the caper.

The boys run through their ill-gotten goods quickly and decide to hit another and, of course, this one falls apart quickly and they get caught.

Wahlberg is the most believable of the actors but the film’s direction didn’t have a clear vision. Johnson is OK but I didn’t buy his character's addictions and therefore I didn’t buy his character. Mackie was the weakest of the three and that might have been the intention because his real life character might have been somewhat wishy-washy. Shalhoub was good as the arrogant tough guy first victim. Harris was one of the better things of this film. Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely wrote this script from a true story. Michael Bay misdirected this as the film never seemed to find a center.

Overall:  This film just didn’t work very well although there were some really funny bits.

To the Wonder

First Hit:  I was left wondering.

My guess is that if you were in Terrence Malick’s mind or maybe on the set, you “got” this film.

I can tell you, I’ve seen more films than maybe 98% of the population and conceptually I’m not sluggish about “getting” what the point is. Therefore, I don't think this film worked. 

The power of love as it expresses itself in a relationship and between people, isn’t well served here without dialogue. OK, I’ll correct myself there is occasional muffled dialogue and I will say when it was there I found myself straining to get more so I could engage myself with the story.

Neil (Ben Affleck) spent most of the time with his mouth semi-open which gave me the sense that he was in disbelief about the behavior of his girlfriend Marina (Olga Kurylenko) who had wild mood swings. Then Neil's old girlfriend Jane (Rachel McAdams) appears on the scene and Neil likes her but ....

This film was too long, lacked a way to connect to the audience and created little vision for an audience. On another level – the pictures of the midwest were wonderful and visually well done.

Affleck was mostly silent with his mouth open emoting little. Kurylenko was interesting to watch go from crazy like behavior to loving like behavior – she did troubled well however there was little context for either realms. McAdams was the character where I wanted Affleck’s character to land because there seemed to be joy and peace. But as we know people are rarely satisfied. Javier Bardem didn’t fit as a priest to which Marina was linked. Malick didn’t really write much of a screenplay but he must have done a bunch story boards that he hoped would tell his version of love. Malik also directed this effort and the tedium was apparent.

Overall:  This isn’t worth watching.