Ridley Scott Continues to Unravel the Backstory of His Sci-Fi Creation

Katherine Waterston in "Alien: Covenant"
Photo Credit: Imdb.com

In 1979, director Ridley Scott gave us his masterwork of sci-fi horror with “Alien.”  Following a story of an extraterrestrial that terrorizes a spacecraft and picks off its crew one by one, Scott utilized a claustrophobic setting, a simple, yet chilling premise, and a legendary performance from Sigourney Weaver to deliver a film that had viewers on edge.

He returned to the franchise 33 years later to direct “Prometheus,” the first installment in a prequel series.  While flawed, it introduced some fascinating aspects to the mythology that gave the possibility of revealing the mystery of the titular aliens, or “xenomorphs.”  Scott now continues the series with “Alien: Covenant,” and with reliably stunning visuals, some cool gross-out moments, and a mesmerizing dual performance from Michael Fassbender, Scott continues the “Alien” series with the chills and thrills we’ve come to expect from these films.

In 2104, the space shuttle “Covenant” is carrying a crew of 15, along with 2,000 colonists and 1,000 embryos on board, all with the hopes of starting a new life on the distant planet of Origae-6.  When the crew receives a radio transmission from an unknown planet, they change their course to investigate.  While exploring, they realize there’s a danger within their surroundings the likes of which they have never encountered before.

Katherine Waterston’s lead role as Daniels isn’t as memorable of a character as Weaver’s Ellen Ripley, but she does what she can with the role, even though she doesn’t get to do much that’s noteworthy until the final half hour, when she’s given the chance to go into full Ellen-Ripley mode.  Given what we see of Daniels in her best scenes, it’s a character I hope Scott brings back for the next film in the series.

As was the case with “Prometheus,” Michael Fassbender is the best part of this film.  He offers a masterful dual-performance as Walter, an android assisting the “Covenant” crew, and David, an android who assisted the crew aboard the “Prometheus.”  As Walter, Fassbender channels the likes of Lance Henriksen, who portrayed android Bishop in “Aliens,” practically replicating his voice and also bringing back the unsettling persona of David.  Fassbender succeeds in distinguishing the two characters with their speech patterns and identities, speaking volumes to his talents by being able to take two similar-looking characters and make they very different from each other. One of the best parts of the film is when Walter and David share a scene where the latter teaches the former how to play music, and to see these two characters in a scene all to themselves and having a gifted actor command the entirety of it helps solidify Fassbender as a new highlight of this series. 

Although we don’t get to know the rest of the “Covenant” crew that well, as almost all of them end up being canon fodder anyway, I will say that Danny McBride, who plays the chief pilot, is a standout because he doesn’t bring his typical stoner-buddy persona to the film, but instead stays rather grounded and keeps his comedic sensibilities to a minimum.

The cinematography from Dariusz Wolski, who lensed “Prometheus” and Scott’s last film, “The Martian,” offers majestic imagery of the vastness of space and the geography of the uncharted planet where the crew members find themselves.  Scott has gone from the suffocating and closed-in setting of the space station in “Alien” to the expansiveness of Origae-6, and the camerawork captures every bit of the territory’s beautifully ominous surroundings.

“Prometheus” asked many questions about the events that came before “Alien,” and in “Covenant,” the screenplay by John Logan and Dante Harper begins to answer them and does well with going more in-depth with the background of the horrific xenomorphs and how they came to be.  And the chilling conclusion they craft will get you hooked for whatever comes next, even though the set-up that occurs about 20 minutes before the end of the film pretty much telegraphs what’s going to happen.

Ridley Scott does well in employing a leisurely pace for the film.  Yes, he gives us some noteworthy gross-out moments and much-anticipated appearances from the xenomorphs, but he takes his time in establishing the setting before bringing in the frights, which is a similar approach he displayed for the original “Alien.”  As a whole, he gives us a blend of his scares we saw in “Alien” and some of the action-movie qualities we saw in James Cameron’s “Aliens,” and it works because, although this film doesn’t quite reach the high standards of those two installments, it succeeds in bringing together what we loved from those high points in the series, while also doing well in moving the prequel trilogy further.  

With “Alien: Covenant” showing that Scott still has enough vision to offer this series, I’m sure the next chapter in his prequel series will bring more of the deep-space terror he conjured all of those decades ago.

Final Grade: B 

With a Few Tricks Up His Sleeve, a Street Magician Tries to Make it Through a Difficult Life

Jacob Latimore in "Sleight"
Photo Credit: Imdb.com

The following review is from a guest contributor by the name of Matthew Williams, a friend of mine and fellow movie buff whom I met in Rider University’s Alternative Film Club.

Director J.D. Dillard’s new drama, “Sleight,” follows a young man (Jacob Latimore) with a crushing past who has to deal with not only raising his little sister after the death of their mother, but also has to navigate the challenges of everyday life by any means necessary, with performing magic on the street and moonlighting as a drug dealer being his means of choice.  However, there may be something either magical, or mystical about him that sets him apart from your average, “Pursuit of Happiness” meets “Dope” meets “Now You See Me” kind of protagonist.  For those interested in uncovering that mystery, I won’t spoil it but, rest assured, the film doesn’t cop out on it once you see it.

One of the best things about the film is the visual effects.  It reminded me of the first time that I saw Sam Raimi’s original “Spider-Man” film, and it actually had me on the edge of my seat because, thanks to great tension, it really made the main character seem as though he was vulnerable.  That’s because of how they achieved the gritty realism of what it would be like if an extraordinary person had to interact aggressively with our ordinary, pliable world.

Everything else?  It’s forgettable, which is the worst.  The film does not commit to anything that it wants to do (so the movie should have been longer), but then it hyper-focuses on certain things, like romance (which should have been cut out).  And, for those who have seen it already…Ahem…I have to vent this…What happened to the main character’s teacher?  Why add him in at all?  And that only created more questions!  That wasn’t backstory; that was a tease!  In your final cut of the movie?  That didn't make sense and made things unclear.  How can you establish all of that in the last 20 minutes of the movie?

How about this?  If you’re an average moviegoer who wants to see a movie that takes a genre (urban cinema) and mixes it with America’s current fixation on superpowers, forces it through the mold of an underdog story, makes the lead an actually smart lead, chops it up to heck, and shoots it with some admittedly desktop-background-worthy cinematography, then watch this movie.  It is, in that regard, what you would expect. 

If you’re a screenwriter, take notes and map this movie’s timeline with a piece of paper and a red pen (you’ll know what I mean).

If you’re an aspiring visual effects artist, watch this movie like it was homework.  You will sit back and really ponder how things were done and how effective minimal effects are when done correctly.

Overall, this is an interesting movie, but one that tries to mash up so many things together that it fails to deliver on any one thing.  Dulé Hill commits himself to his performance, but he’s so over-the-top that he seems like he belongs in a larger picture than this, as he really stands out when he acts circles around everyone else in the movie, aside from the lead. (Side note: Hollywood, give Hill more scene-chewing roles - it was like Heath Ledger’s Joker with the cockiness of a James Bond villain).  The sci-fi/magic aspect does not play into the plot as much as expected, but rather seems like an added thing on top of the crime-underbelly storyline and the societal/racial conversation that it’s trying to touch upon concerning police brutality and class issues.  In the end, “Sleight” comes of like a student film with a large budget. 

Final Grade: B-

In the Far Reaches of Space, Marvel’s Galactic Mavericks Return

From left: Gamora (Zoe Saldana), Nebula (Karen Gillan),
Star-Lord (Chris Pratt), Drax the Destroyer (Dave Bautista),
and Rocket Racoon (voiced by Bradley Cooper) in
"Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2"
Photo Credit: Imdb.com

Almost three years ago, director James Gunn gave us a refreshing dose of weirdness to the Marvel Cinematic Universe with his superhero space adventure, “Guardians of the Galaxy,” which was based on the Marvel Comics by Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning, and it won us over with its fun characters, fast-paced story, and irreverent humor.

Gunn now returns to bring us “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2.”  Although it doesn’t feel quite as fresh as the original, it benefits from one of Marvel’s strongest ensembles to date, deeper emotions, and beautiful visuals.

Since we last saw them, Peter Quill/Star-Lord (Chris Pratt), Gamora (Zoe Saldana), Drax the Destroyer (Dave Bautista), Rocket Raccoon (voiced by Bradley Cooper), and Baby Groot (voiced by Vin Diesel), have been respected and known as Guardians of the Galaxy.  At the start of their latest adventure, they are given a task by an alien race, known as the Sovereign, to protect valuable batteries from a galactic monster.  When Rocket steals some of them, the Sovereign hires a group of Ravagers, led by Yondu Udonta (Michael Rooker), to track them down.  After the heroes crash-land on a distant planet during their getaway, they are met by a man named Ego (Kurt Russell), who reveals himself to be Star-Lord’s father.  While the team hides out from the Ravagers, Star-Lord will come to know his father and the truth behind his parentage.

Although it’s difficult to go into detail about the performances because there is a risk of spoilers, what I can say is that the film succeeds in evolving many of the central characters from the original.  While they have the same qualities that made them so much fun to watch in the first film, most of them are given deeper emotional dynamics that are shared between each other, and this especially effects Star-Lord, Rocket Raccoon, and Yondu, the latter of whom is given an unexpectedly emotional arc in which Rooker’s handling of the role practically makes him the MVP of the film.  And Kurt Russell, as the best new character of the film, offers a very enjoyable and charismatic performance as Star-Lord’s father.  As far as Baby Groot goes, I was worried he would be overused in the film as nothing more than a merchandising opportunity (he’s the main focus of the opening-credits sequence), his character is used sparingly, giving us just enough to make us laugh, but not overdoing it and shifting focus away from anything else.

While the general plot of the film is a bit simplistic, Gunn’s screenplay more than makes up for that by having his narrative much more character-driven.  Because of this, the film becomes surprisingly and refreshingly emotional at times, but for reasons I won’t disclose.

Another aspect of the script to admire is how it restrains itself from including too many connections to other MCU films, unlike many previous installments.  Besides a passing mention of an Infinity Stone or Thanos, the overarching villain of the MCU, this movie has a story that’s more self-contained, one that sticks to the story at hand, instead of focusing on setting up future movies.

Although Gunn does a fine job at handling the comedic aspects of the story, one thing with which he could do a little a less are the ‘80s references.  Yes, some of them are funny, but when there are too many, it becomes a bit lazy.  These are funny characters in this movie, and they can do well with making you laugh without constant pop-culture remarks.

As a director, Gunn offers, vibrant, colorful, and inventive visuals and isn’t afraid to make them go a little weird from time to time, but thankfully, he doesn’t make this sequel his mission do outdo the original.  While this sequel offers some great action, it never feels like it’s trying to give you more for the sake of it, which is a welcome change of pace, and Gunn seems to spend as much time developing characters as he does with crafting the gorgeous visuals.  Because of this, Gunn finds a balance between the spectacle and drama and is able to have the movie take a break from the MCU formula that we have seen in some of their other films.

Gunn has already signed on to write and direct “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3,” and seeing as he’s delivered two epic space adventures that have distinguished themselves from other Marvel movies, I think it’s safe to say he will succeed in doing so again the third time around.  While the next time we see these characters will be in “Avengers: Infinity War” next May, I’m looking forward to seeing them again in their own world, under the directorial guidance of Gunn.  Although the MCU blueprints don’t tend to change much between films, “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2” shows that Marvel can still offer surprises us from time to time.

Final Grade: B+ 

Through the Beauty and Danger of the Amazon, an Unknown City is Found

Charlie Hunnam in "The Lost City of Z"
Photo Credit: Imdb.com

One of the best aspects about film is how, once in a while, you will find a movie that tells a true story of which you know very little or nothing about, adding to the mystique of what you’re about to watch and leading to a cinematic learning experience that could offer much as you see these events come to life on screen.

Such is what happens in director James Gray’s biographical drama, “The Lost City of Z,” which follows a group of brave travelers who set out to find a lost civilization.  With a strong lead performance and a stunning true story about the power of worldly exploration, Gray’s latest is one of the best of the year so far.

At the turn of the twentieth century, Percy Fawcett (Charlie Hunnam) is an officer in the British military.  He’s soon given an opportunity from the Royal Geographical Society to travel to South America and map a jungle that rests on the edge of Bolivia and Brazil.  While doing so, he comes across clues of what may be that of a lost city.  When he returns to England and reports his findings to the Royal Geographical Society, the institute grants Fawcett their support to travel back to South America and continue his quest to find this mysterious civilization.

While Hunnam’s last couple of film performances had me skeptical of his acting abilities, I’m pleased to say he surprised me with his commanding work in the lead role.  Right at the beginning of the film, you can tell this performance will be the one where our perception of Hunnam's film acting will change, but the scene that convinced me of this was when his character addresses the Royal Geographical Society of his findings.  So passionate is Hunnam in displaying his character’s love for exploration, that you are instantly drawn to Fawcett’s persistence.  Through his portrayal of Fawcett, Hunnam succeeds in giving us an idea of how much these expeditions must have meant to this notable individual.  It’s a spirited and inspiring performance that exposes a new depth for Hunnam’s acting talents.

The movie also offers a terrific supporting cast that includes Robert Pattinson as Fawcett’s loyal fellow explorer, Sienna Miller as his headstrong wife, and Tom Holland as his tough-spirited son.

The superb cinematography by Darius Khondji captures the Amazon’s many details, highlighting its gorgeousness as thoroughly as its many perils.  With his camerawork, Khondji displays the denseness of the forest’s surroundings, transporting us to a part of the world that was once shrouded in secret.

The screenplay by Gray, which is based on David Grann’s book, “The Lost City of Z: A Tale of Deadly Obsession in the Amazon,” offers a thorough look at Fawcett’s South American travels, his family life, and his military experience as the film spans across the first quarter of the twentieth century.  By providing us with a view into his life as a father, soldier, and explorer, we are given an in-depth look of not only his skills as a traveler, but the discipline he learned in the military that gave him the mentality and bravery for such an undertaking, as well as the role his family played in his career.  If you go into this film not knowing much about Fawcett, the screenplay offers plenty of components to let you become familiar with his contributions to geography.

Gray imbues this film with a bit of a classic Hollywood feel and crafts a wonderful exploration epic, and through his vision of the Amazon, Gray shows a love for exploration that’s as strong as his subject’s.  This is one of the finest cinematic journeys you can take this year, and if you’re looking for a grand adventure at the movies, Gray will take you there.

Final Grade: A