The Flash

 

The Flash

Two Flashs, two Batmen and one Supergirl what else can you ask for. The movie is a bit convoluted, but it is lots of fun. For all his emotional and legal issues Ezra Miller gives a strong performance. He has great comedic timing and the audience laughed aloud. A running gag because of his super metabolism he has to consume food anyway he can get it.

The Flash lacks the square jaw righteousness of Superman or the moodiness of Batman. The Flash is vulnerable; ironically he has a problem with being on time and is awkward around women. Uncharacteristically for a hero he is sometimes uncertain.

The story deals with alternate time lines/ alternate realities. The base story is Barry Allen (the Flash) trying to prove his father’s innocence in the murder of his mother. This quest takes him to another reality and this is when things get complicated. The Flash is assisted by other super heroes,  Batman and Supergirl. There are two Batmen, Ben Affleck and Michael Keaton, one does more than the other. Supergirl is introduced to the pantheon of super heroes. Her performance is more in line with what super heroes do, they battle. She is dynamic and her story is  a subplot of the film . She fights General Zod, a villain from a prior Superman movie. In an alternate reality it does not matter if you died in another movie.

The film has lots of Easter eggs. Many pay homage to past heroes living and deceased. A level of geekiness may be necessary to ID them. Some heroes only us old folk will recognize (hint black and white). There are also fun  cameos.

The film has been anticipated for a long time  generating lots of buzz. Rotten Tomato gave the film a modest 68%. I think this movie is critic proof and audiences will not be deterred. The box office is more challenging. The production cost is $200-$220m, which does not include advertising which normally is about  50%. With out a profit a sequel is questionable.  As for Ezra Miller, he needs all his super powers to remain as the Flash.

p.s.- Stay after the credits run.

Spiderman Homecoming

Spiderman Homecoming

This is a very juvenile movie. It has none of the darkness of prior movies. It has the airiness of a teen movie akin to the Breakfast Club. This Spiderman is an awkward insecure fifteen-year-old living in Queens. Tom Holland is a British actor who was spared the need to master a Queen’s accent (as were the other Spidermen). Tom Holland is a journeyman for the Avengers under the supervision of Tony Stark, Robert Downy jr. Holland keeps on screwing up as teenagers do.

Parker has a rotund generic Asian side kick who provides comic relief if not angst. This movie is so PC I doubt Republicans will see it. Lots of the action takes place in the high school including detention.  Peter is infatuated with a girl that he can barely look eye to eye.

There is a villain, The Vulture, played by Michael Keaton. The Vulture is a junkman who hauls machine parts from other dimensions and makes super weapons for bad guys. He flies a winged contraption that looks like a bunch of fans wired together. He is a hand full for young Spidey and Spidey needs help.

The movie does have light moments eliciting laughs. Marisa Tomie is Aunt May. The original Aunt May was a white-haired fragile old lady. I am not complaining about Tomie, but whoever did the casting should get their glasses checked.

Given the robust box office and high Rotten Tomato score this review is anathema. Maybe it is old age but this movie is better for the kids. 

Birdman

For best picture the Golden Globes has Birdman under the category of comedy. The category should be black comedy. The film is about a former movie star whose fame came from playing the superhero Birdman. Now in his sixties he wants to revive his career and find meaning for himself as a Broadway actor/writer, directing himself in his own play. He is a man looking for resurrection.

There are parallels between Michael Keaton and his character Riggan Thomson (aka Birdman). Like Thomson, Keaton was a big star in the late 80’s and early 90’s with two Batmen movies under his belt and playing the lead in the iconic movie Beetlejuice. Even his minor movies were watchable. Then lead roles stopped coming and his star faded. Keaton has firsthand motivation to play this role. He is nominated for best actor by the Golden Globes.

 Keaton’ reputation was as a lighthearted comedic roles. When he branched out as Batman the role was confident and in control. Playing Riggan, Keaton is in uncharted water. Riggan is an emotional train wreck due for a collision.  Keaton delivers an intense and very paranoid (psychotic) performance. The script plays with your perception. Keaton coexists in the fields of madness and sanity. His hallucinations are a product of doubt and insecurity. His alter ego, Birdman, eggs him on to go back to the big screen and leave the uncertainty and pettiness of Broadway. Keaton desperately wants the legitimacy of Broadway more than a big box office. His character has two personas, Riggan the actor and Birdman. Contrary to physics they occupy the same space. Managing this conflict gives Keaton’s performance tension and the chance for his own resurrection.

Edward Norton plays a huge prick. He is the matinee idol that sells ticks, but his conceit and self-centeredness make him loathsome. What is worse he is a good actor. Norton plays the role with aplomb. It takes him out of his comfort zone as being mild mannered and almost nebbish. With his thick ego he has no compunction standing nude in front of a mirror in a dressing room with his privates strategically shielded.  He steals scenes and infuriates his co-stars. There is a great fight scene between Keaton and Norton seminude in their Fruit of the Loom underwear; Yuk. Norton was a bit over the top, but he relished the role.

Emma Stone is super. I think she gave one of the best performances of the movie. She looks fragile and just came out of rehab. She is Riggan’s daughter and their relationship is on the mends after years of neglect and divorce.   Her anger is explosive and her deliverance is muscular; she is in your face. She also plays coy with Norton’s character and gets under his skin, maybe more. If not the femme fatale, she is the femme to watch.

Much has been said about Zack Galifianakis’s performance as being normal and not looney. Bravo for acting like a human. With his weight loss he looked good.

This movie is not for everyone. Keaton gives a forceful performance. I am rooting for him because I am big Beetlejuice fan. Good luck Mike