Blade Runner 2049 - Film Review

I was a senior in high school the first time I saw Blade Runner. I’d received the bare bones Director’s Cut DVD as a Christmas present from a friend (This was before 2007’s robust Final Cut release) and I’d caught an awful cold that left me exhausted and somewhat delusional.

For some reason, I thought this was the appropriate state of mind to watch this dark, disturbing and cerebral film.

For two hours I sat there and watched Ridley Scott’s visual masterpiece, totally zonked and fading in and out of consciousness. Blade Runner is a tough enough pill to swallow when you’re not suffering from a massive head cold, and in this neurotic state of mind, I had no clue what to make of it. It’s a reaction not all that dissimilar from that of audiences back in 1982 when the film was first released.

But in the years since, film fans and critics have re-examined Blade Runner and come around to its groundbreaking and influential style, going so far as to call it a cinematic classic. It’s a film that gets better and better each time you watch it. I can attest to this personally. While my first viewing was less than satisfactory, I discovered a lot more to love the second time around. By my third viewing, I’d determined it was one of my all-time favorites.

I bring up this story because my experience watching Blade Runner 2049, the 35-years-later sequel, was very similar to my experience watching the original for the first time, minus the outright dislike.

Like its predecessor, Blade Runner 2049 isn’t interested in playing nice with the audience. Its methodical pacing (almost too methodical at times), limited emotional connection and lack of action sequences seem tailor-made to defy audience expectation and test the attention spans of those accustomed to the standard 21st century blockbuster. Its plotting is clunky and scattered, pointing in every which direction like a compass in constant motion seeking out Magnetic North. It doesn’t cover any visual or thematic territory that the original hadn’t already touched, and at 163 minutes it’s way too long.

And yet, despite these shortcomings, It is an undeniably fascinating viewing experience and one of the more intriguing and unconventional blockbuster releases of the 21st century. Director Denis Villeneuve has churned out some of the best films released in this past decade (Prisoners, Sicario, Arrival), but this is a crowning achievement of another sort. He’s managed to take a sequel no one thought they wanted and produced a singular vision that is both worthy of its predecessor’s legacy whilst impressively carving out a niche all its own. Even if it misses the mark in some respects, that’s still an extraordinary accomplishment.

Without getting too buried in the details, I’ll give you a very basic plot rundown (if you’d rather go in completely blind, you’ll want to skip the next couple paragraphs):

Ryan Gosling is ‘K,’ a Blade Runner tasked with bringing in or ‘retiring’ older Nexus models that have gone into hiding. During one of his assignments, K comes across information that could significantly alter the course of the future for humans and replicants alike. I don’t think it’s a spoiler for anyone who’s seen one of the film’s amazing trailers or posters to also inform you that Harrison Ford’s Deckerd character will show up at some point and play a role in these proceedings. Exactly how he gets involved and what the extent of his involvement is, well, I’ll leave that to you to discover.

Part of what made the original Blade Runner so powerful was its ambiguity. It asked many questions but provided few answers. You may or may not appreciate Blade Runner 2049's answering some of those lingering questions, but in the process it asks and answers even more along similar lines: the nature of humanity, love and what it means to have a soul. It’s intriguing for sure and there's plenty of ambiguity left over, but would have been far more powerful had some of the answers been a little less explicitly stated.

The film also suffers from a wealth of subplots, as if Villeneuve and screenwriters Hampton Fancher and Michael Green couldn’t decide what to focus on. Some of the best storylines are frustratingly underdeveloped, especially the one involving Tyrell stand-in Niander Wallace. (Here’s something I never thought I’d say: I wanted more Jared Leto in this movie. It’s one of the film’s most intriguing)

One of the more successful subplots involves love interest Joi, wonderfully portrayed by Ana De Armas. K’s relationship with Joi anchors the film with a sorely needed emotional connection.

As with the original film, Blade Runner 2049’s strongest aspects are its visuals and sound design. Ridley Scott and Jordan Cronenweth’s visual work in Blade Runner resulted in what is arguably the best-looking film ever made. That’s quite the standard to live up to, but if anyone would be up to the task, it’s legendary cinematographer Roger Deakins.

And boy oh boy, is he ever.

In a career spent crafting some of the most striking visuals in recent cinema history, Deakins has gone above and beyond here, delivering some of his best work. The visual effects mesh beautifully with his aesthetic, resulting in one of the most fully-realized and believable worlds since...well...Blade Runner. Maybe the movie gods will finally see fit to gift this incredible talent with the Academy Award that has so unfairly eluded him for his entire career.

Likewise, Hans Zimmer and Benjamin Wallfisch’s haunting score, paired with the incredible sound design, provides a bleak, otherworldly backdrop that unsettles and captivates in equal measure. I can’t wait to pick up a copy for myself.

Ryan Gosling’s performance as K is another of the film’s highlight. Gosling is, like Deakins and Zimmer, a master of his craft. He has played everything from charmers (La La Land) to cold-blooded hitmen (Drive) and even creepy boyfriends with impressive depression beards (The Notebook). Here he’s tasked with taking a relatively blank slate character and making us empathize with him, and he does so with such effortless finesse, you want to kiss the man.

Er...did I say ‘kiss?’ I meant to say…uh…Well...no...actually, on second thought, I did mean to say ‘kiss.’ (Call me, Ryan)

And Harrison Ford...I don’t want to say too much for fear I might give something away, but I was really impressed with his work here. I was afraid he might phone it in, but as with his reprisal of Han Solo in The Force Awakens, Ford gives his all, delivering an emotionally complex and touching performance.

Blade Runner 2049 is such an unconventional effort in this modern age of blockbuster cinema, I’m genuinely amazed Warner Bros. allowed it to be released as is. I have to extend major kudos to the studio for standing behind what is sure to be a divisive product. But despite its heady nature and methodical (sometimes to a fault) pacing, there is plenty here to engage and captivate patient, thoughtful audiences. I sincerely hope it makes a profit; we need more of this brave and challenging brand of mainstream filmmaking.

And much like my experience with the original Blade Runner, I have a feeling I could grow to appreciate this sequel more and more as time goes by. Whether I’d go so far as to someday call it one of my favorite films? Eh, that’s less likely. But who knows? Stranger things have happened.

...like a good Blade Runner sequel.

La La Land - Film Review

La La Land is about as close to pure delight as you can get when it comes to a moviegoing experience. From its opening song and dance number to its final scene, it will put a smile on your face that will seldom falter, even in the moments that break your heart. It succeeds in nearly every regard, working as both a throwback to the classic musicals of yesteryear and a genuinely touching romance. 

Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone play Sebastian Wilder and Mia Dolan, two dreamers trying to make ends meet in the city of Los Angeles. Mia is an aspiring actress working as a barista in a studio lot coffee shop. She hops from audition to audition, working tirelessly to achieve her goals, but with little success. Sebastian is an inspired pianist with an obsessive love for jazz. He takes what work he can, playing in restaurants that insist he stick to their uninspired playlist rather than demonstrating his true talent. He dreams of opening a jazz club where he can play the music he loves unencumbered by anyone else’s demands while also reminding people why jazz is such an integral music genre. When the two finally meet, it sparks a relationship that inspires both to pursue their dreams with renewed vigor.  

Perhaps one of the most impressive things La La Land’s writer/director Damien Chazelle manages to pull off here is a tone that is utterly sincere. There’s no winking at the camera, no cynicism – the film is an earnest and loving homage to an all-too-rare genre in today’s cinematic landscape. His direction is inspired. While many modern attempts may have chosen to utilize flashy editing and fancy cuts to hide their stars’ lack of musical talents, Chazelle’s camera’s gaze rarely falters. He relies on long, unbroken takes to emphasize the talents of his two leads and it is an absolute joy to watch Gosling and Stone engage in what are essentially live performances. The cinematography and production design successfully evokes the big, colorful aesthetic found in so many old musicals.

But a musical is only as good as its soundtrack and, thankfully, Justin Hurtwitz’s, combined with Pasek and Paul's lyrics, is one of the year’s best. The songs are catchy and frequently stunning, infused with big band jazz elements and heartfelt ballads that'll give you chills. Stone and Gosling have strong voices and the charisma to match, and while Mandy Moore’s choreography (no, not that Mandy Moore) is simple and old-fashioned, it’s also efficient and gives the pair plenty of opportunities to stretch their dancing chops.

If there’s anything I could find fault with about the film, it’s that Chazelle’s earnest screenplay is almost too simplistic. While in some ways that works for the mood and tone he’s going for here, there’s a prevalent feeling he doesn’t actually have much to say or add to the genre. His characters are likable enough, but they aren’t particularly complex and don’t go much deeper than their surface-level motivations.

Let me put it another way: yes, La La Land is a successful musical throwback, but has the outpouring of love the film’s received been because of its actual quality or because it reminds people of much better films from the past? If La La Land had been released back in the 50s or 60s, would it be remembered as a classic today, or would it have been lost in the midst of its superiors?

But perhaps it isn’t fair for me to take such a pessimistic approach when viewing La La Land. Because, quite frankly, even if its nostalgia milking accounts for much of its appeal, it’s also a damn good movie with two marvelous performances at its center. And even though I want to be cynical about its overall appeal, whenever it comes to mind, I can’t help but smile. And what’s so bad about a movie that just wants to make people smile?

FINAL RATING: 4/5

The Nice Guys - Film Review

Shane Black. Buddy Comedy. Ryan Gosling. If you’re not already sold, don’t even talk to me.

Mr. Black has been one of Hollywood’s most distinct voices ever since he broke into the industry with his infamous Lethal Weapon screenplay in the mid-eighties. His directorial debut, 2005’s Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, is one of the best action-comedies of the past 20 years and features spectacular turns from Robert Downey Jr. and Val Kilmer. Hell, I even love Iron Man 3, which earned the ire of fanboys worldwide by subverting expectations and tropes with a refreshingly manic take on the superhero genre.

The Nice Guys is essentially Black’s victory lap. It treads familiar territory for the filmmaker, and if you’re expecting something revolutionary, you’ll be walking away empty-handed. But take it for what it is - a spectacular caper overflowing with zippy dialogue, a healthy dose of action and the inspired pairing of Ryan Gosling and Russell Crowe - and you’ll be more than satisfied.

Gosling is Holland March, a private investigator doing his best to raise a daughter on his own. He gets caught up in a case that involves tracking down a girl named Amelia and encounters Jackson Healy (Crowe), a violent, soft-spoken enforcer who was hired by Amelia to get March off her back. When Amelia mysteriously disappears, the two strike up a shaky alliance to figure out just what the hell is going on and end up uncovering a fiendish plot far more complicated than they ever expected.

This is exactly the kind of storytelling Black excels at: two individuals with opposing personalities and methodologies forced to work together for the greater good. It’s a winning formula (one which Black pretty much pioneered) and the film’s charms are plentiful. The late-1970s setting is perfect. The script, co-written by Black and Anthony Bagarozzi, is fast-paced, breezy and full of memorable one-liners.

But while Black’s writing and direction play a key part in The Nice Guys’ success - this has some of the best-staged action sequences I've seen this year - the plotting plays second fiddle to its main characters' relationship, and it’s the chemistry between Ryan Gosling and Russell Crowe that really makes this one shine. These guys make for one of the great on-screen duos of the year, probably the past decade. Their line deliveries and mannerisms consistently had me doubled over in my seat from laughter. Any shortcomings regarding the familiarity of plot were easily forgiven in light of their performances.

The Nice Guys excels in nearly every way and is absolutely one of my favorite films of 2016 thus far. I sincerely hope it manages to find its audience in the midst of the summer blockbuster onslaught, so Black can keep making movies like it. If you’re a fan of his work, or just a fan of action-comedies in general, you’ll exit the theater with a huge smile on your face, hoping against hope we’ll get to see these characters again in the not-too-distant future.

FINAL RATING: 4/5