REVIEW: Fallen (1998)

There’s always a charm to movies like this. Fallen is a 1990s thriller movie starring Denzel Washington and John Goodman; isn’t that a kick-ass cast?

Director: Gregory Holblitt

Starring: Denzel Washington, John Goodman

Website: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0119099/

This is easily one of the better Denzel Washington movies, in which he plays a cocky detective who ends up on the trail of a body-jumping demon called Azazel. This is just one of those great bare-bones detective thrillers with a premise that is original enough to stand out without trying too hard to be anything it isn’t. All the tropes you would expect are in this movie – you have the stoic and serious main character slipping to the dark side. You have the hesitant and mysterious female lead who slowly opens up to the main character. You have a little kid character, in this case Washington’s nephew. You have a stern boss and a concerned sidekick character – the latter is Goodman’s role here.

The difference with Fallen is the quality with which it is executed and the great atmosphere it exudes. The pacing is really good and keeps you on the edge of your seat the whole time. There are no real unexpected twists, and yet the story is told in such a way that you want to see what happens next anyway – that is an impressive feat. The events that transpire are carried out with a real seriousness and weight that make them compelling. It’s surprising how credible they make a body-jumping Biblical demon seem, too, and it never comes off as corny or anything. The scenes where you can’t quite tell who Azazel has possessed are the best ones in the film. Creepy and atmospheric, keeping you guessing.

Speaking of atmosphere, a word I have bandied about quite a lot already, this film is flooded with it – I especially like the use of the Rolling Stones song as a constant motif throughout. I don’t really know how Azazel knows a Rolling Stones song. But it works as a suitably eerie repeating theme throughout the film. And hearing John Goodman sing it at the end…that’s just great, man. A lot of the movie is set in crowded, urbanized city streets in the wintertime, which is good because the wintry setting bespeaks a cold, frigid feel, and the crowded and urban setting makes Azazel’s people-jumping skills all the more confusing and disorienting. It’s like he has a whole flock of unsuspecting, helpless chickens to feed on.

So Fallen is a kick ass thriller. It’s well written, well acted and professionally executed, with flair and style. There’s nothing about this movie that really speaks out as something transcendent of its genre, but sometimes all you need is a good, solid B-grade movie in the genre. Fallen adheres perfectly well to all the clichés of the detective thriller genre, and does them all beautifully.

That pic does not belong to me. All copyright to its original owners.

Review: Cop Out (2010) TH

Oh, buddy, more coppers

Brooklyn police detectives Jimmy (Bruce Willis) and Paul (Tracy Morgan) have been together as partners for the NYPD for 9 years, until they get suspended for 30 days without pay as per a botched sting operation involving Mexican drug dealers, excessive force and now an unusable informant. Jimmy's daughter is getting married and instead of letting his ex-wife's wealthy, condescending husband Roy (Jason Lee) foot the bill, he volunteers despite having no income for the next month and nothing to his name besides a very expensive, one-of-a-kind Andy Pafko baseball card.

This jumps over to a subplot that ties into the very reason they got suspended when the card gets stolen. They dodge giving information to the arch rival detectives Mangold and Hunsaker--who are constantly give them sarcastic flack for being screw ups--and decide to follow up the leads on their own. After getting some information off an effeminate cat burglar, who doesn't know when to shut up, they end up at the crib of the Catholic, murdering-dudes-left-and-right gang leader named Poh Boy who's got a posse that's armed to the teeth like a bunch of modern outlaw bandidos. The intimidating and potentially loco man named after a sandwich negotiates a deal that if they can get back his Mercedes Benz from some elusive guys who stole it then he'll hand over the card. Though a simple transaction turns into a fiasco that involves a growing list of illegal activities that these honest cops can't look the other way on.

"Cop Out" is a from-one-thing-to-another type movie, where the plot is loose and the players throw out some banter for the meantime. Problem is the story isn't note worthy and on top of that the chemistry between Willis and Morgan feels hit and miss, not to mention they frequently jump in and out of character. Ana de la Reguera as Gabriela is cute and likable, and the gang leader, played by Guillermo Diaz, is brutal to the point of exaggeration but also brings a certain on-screen presence just to see his next move. This isn't just a basic movie, it's a movie that doesn't hold that much power over its audience: they don't capitalize on what to root for, they don't take advantage of relating factors, there's nothing of value to polish with upkeep, light on mystery, small surprises, nothing to learn and repeat, little on growth, not as big on action and this produces superficial rewards--exhales. The one thing it does have is some nostalgia going on: '80s synthesizer music mixed with other radio hits, as well as more references to other movies than one can count. It plays on the cult, but doesn't produce a following itself.

This is purposely derivative and what makes it trip over its own shoelaces is it never fully crosses back over to walk with its own gait. "Lethal Weapon" and "Rush Hour" played on the tried-and-true and had their cliches as well, but still added some other elements to make the experience have their own distinctions to go back to. This is the second chance I've given this--being a fan of some of Kevin Smith and Bruce Willis' work--with the first time being okay if nothing special, but on the second time the slap stick jokes wear thin and have a shelf life of one time use with some currently having a stale taste as is. After awhile "Cop Out" feels like it's dragging through the mud as what's displayed isn't producing anything that's exceptional, even by simple escapism standards. For shame.

Director: Kevin Smith (Clerks, Dogma, Zack and Miri Make a Porno)
Starring: Bruce Willis, Tracy Morgan, Guillermo Diaz, Ana de la Reguera, Jason Lee, Kevin Pollak, Michelle Trachtenberg
Website: IMDB

NIC CAGE MONTH: Snake's Eyes (1998)

Well, got to keep Nic Cage Month rolling somehow, so let’s just dive into 1998’s Snake Eyes, directed by Brian De Palma.

Director: You don't read very well, do you?

Starring: You're not really paying attention, are you?

Here's the website!

I know what you’re thinking. Brian De Palma? Didn’t he direct that inimitable gangster classic Scarface? Well, yes. But he also directed the pinnacle of ass-ness known as 2006’s Black Dahlia; a film so horrible that it defies all conventions of horribleness known to man. So what was I supposed to expect from this? Well, it’s a bit in between those two extremes.

I mean, on the one hand, it’s got Nic Cage playing a badass action hero. He does a good job at that, and he does a good job here. His performance is goofy but also heartfelt, and you really get into watching him kick ass as the movie goes on. There are no freak outs in this movie, though. He plays it pretty straight, and overall his performance is acceptable. Carla Gugino is also good as the female lead, mysterious and sexy – you get to see her without a shirt on a few times, if that’s all you care about in a movie chick. She’s pretty convincing, if not a little shallow. I think that’s one of the movie’s main problems – most of these characters are just too shallow. Gary Sinise is especially disappointing. I just didn’t believe his character at all, aided in no small part by the absurd and confusing change his character goes through in the second half.

And the directing is just so sloppy I have a hard time believing that De Palma really thought he was doing a good job. Was he just high the whole time? There are numerous times in this movie where the camera seems to be doing something totally different than what is actually going on in the story. Some of the angles and shots are just awkward as hell. One that I remember in particular is when the camera is doing a bird’s eye view of everything going on in the various hotel rooms. That’s OK, right? Well, yeah, until you PLACE THE BIRD’S EYE VIEW OVER THE TWO CENTRAL CHARACTERS while they’re having a conversation, holding it there like you just went out to lunch and forgot. I mean, come on. This was passed as good directing? It’s not even that stylish. The whole movie is full of weird, awkward shots like that.

So really, with such haphazard directing and uninspired character writing, the only thing that could possibly save this movie was the story, which does admittedly deliver. It’s just a really solid story, and it’s entertaining and engaging even when De Palma is trying his best to screw it up. So yeah, a senator gets killed and everyone is locked inside this boxing arena waiting to be interrogated, while Nic Cage tries to find out who killed the senator and why. He uncovers a big conspiracy, and things get even wackier from there.

So, yeah, this is one of the more average and workmanlike Nic Cage movies. It’s fun, but ultimately shallow and you probably won’t care too much to revisit it after one viewing. Oh and he goes to jail at the end for his crimes. HOORAY FOR BRINGING CORRUPT OFFICIALS TO JUSTICE.

And it isn’t like he doesn’t get Carla Gugino at the end anyway. If he had taken better care of his finances, though, she wouldn’t have had to do Race to Witch Mountain or any Spy Kid movies, and Nic Cage wouldn’t have had to do The Sorcerer’s Apprentice.

Oops. I have to review that one now, don’t I? Damn.

"You WILL watch me...YOU WILL."

The Other Guys (2010)

Staring: Will Ferrell, Mark Wahlberg, Eva Mendes

Directed by Adam McKay

IMDb: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1386588/

Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Other_Guys

"The Other Guys" is a pretty funny movie. It reunites Will Ferrell with director Adam McKay, and Mark Wahlberg is also along for the ride to deliver some laughs. Granted, there are some problems with it, but overall it is a good flick.

It starts off with Samuel L. Jackson proving that he is one of the greatest people who ever lived. He is in high-speed pursuit of a bunch of bad guys along with Dwayne "the Rock" Johnson, who I guess would be also awesome if he had not just stared in "The Tooth Fairy". Anyway, Jackson's car gets stuck in a bus, he frees it and he goes flying at the bad guys, shouting a bunch of stuff I could not understand, blows up a bunch of stuff, and somehow survives. YEAH! Unfortunately, both of them are killed in a separate incident shortly afterward (the poster above is a bit deceiving; they have a total of about five minutes of screen time). This occurs when, in order to stop another bunch of bad guys, they jump off of a building that is about 10-20 stories high in order to land in a bunch of bushes that were not there, and even if they were, they would not have prevented them from dying or at least critically injured them.

Ummm...okay.

Anyway, with both of them out of the picture, who will take their place as the big shot of the department? That's right, the Other Guys! We have Terry Hoitz (Mark Wahlberg), who plays a jerk cop who is haunted by a tragedy from his past: he shot Derek Jeter in the leg during the 2003 World Series, costing the Yankees the championship. This a bit ironic since in real life Wahlberg is from Boston, so I suspect a Red Sox conspiracy. Anyway, he gets stuck with Allen Gamble (Ferrell) who is basically Bob Saget's character Danny Tanner from "Full House". He is just incredibly bland and lame, though in this instance the character is actually funny (yes, we all loved “Full House” when we were 5, but it’s time to move on). The two of them come across a suspected financial cover-up involving a famous investor named David Ershon (Steve Coogan), which leads them on a wild goose chase that leads them to meet some interesting characters, and includes a number of gags such as Allen having some unfortunate things happen to his Prius, and both of them having their shoes stolen...twice. There are a number of good quotes involving peacocks and other things throughout the feature. Oh yeah, and Michael Keaton plays their boss who, among other things, keeps quoting TLC songs, though he insists that he is not... Well, its not "Batman", but at least Keaton is still working, right?

I guess he biggest problem that this film has is that it gets extremely distracted. True, when Ferrell and McKay did "Anchorman" and "Talladega Nights" each had random scenes that did not really progress the story but were still funny. In this movie, the same thing happens, but they take way too many detours, and it gets to the point where its 1 hour, 47 minute running time feels like 2 and a half hours. Do not get me wrong, the stuff they put in there was usually funny, but they could have condensed the material a little more so that it felt more it had a more cohesive story arch.

There is also this weird part during the closing credits that shows the differences in the income between American employees and their super-rich bosses, as well as making references to TARP and other aspects of the recent financial meltdown. Admittedly, some of the stuff they mention is kind of interesting, but they play off of a part of the plot which is ultimately insignificant; the information would feel better served if it were shown at the end of the upcoming "Wall Street" sequel. If Ferrell and McKay want to get political, they can save it for their "Funny or Die" website, not try to shove it into a film where it does not belong.

Despite its flaws, "The Other Guys" is a feature that made me laugh more often than not. While it is not as funny as "Anchorman" or "Talladega", it is the best movie Will Ferrell has done in years, which is good news for him given the sub-par quality of his recent work. Either way, it is worthwhile, and I recommend it.

P.S. If you stay until the end of the closing credits (and the populist rant), as Ferrell/McKay fans may expect, there is an extra scene with Ferrell and Wahlberg. It is nothing much, but you can check it out if you want.