MOVIE REVIEW: Deadpool (2016)

Deadpool (2016)

Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi

Directed By: Tim Miller

Before we get into it, let's take a moment to praise the actions of the individual that leaked the Deadpool test footage online a few years back. Without that video and the enormous rallying support from the fandom after seeing it, this movie never see's the light of day, at least not this version of it. Thanks to that support they were able to make a comic book movie unlike everything we have seen before, and I'm not just talking about that hard 'R' rating. Using fourth wall breaking, ultra violence, and unfiltered humor they have created a film that is quite simply, a good time.

If you are unfamiliar with the character of Deadpool don't worry, he is an easy one to follow. Wade Wilson (Ryan reynolds) is ex special forces, making him a highly trained killer. When he is diagnosed with inoperable cancer and offered a way to fix it, even if it is from some shady people, he sees no other option if he wants to live to see his would be wife again. His "golden opportunity" isn't as shiny as he'd hoped though as he is left horribly disfigured by the procedure, but there is a kicker. The experiment also made him practically invincible, his new mutations allowing his cells to regenerate at a rapid pace (much like Wolverine). With a chip on his shoulder he decides to use his new powers to enact his revenge on the people who destroyed his insanely good looks. 

The simplicity of the story allows them to play with the format and have fun with the characters. From the opening credits down to the final scene what you see is completely absurd and out of line, just as it should be. Reynolds finally gets to play the super "hero" he was born to be, the "merc with a mouth" couldn't have been brought to life any better than what we are given here. He is witty, crass, childish, goofy, and totally offensive and his back forths with T.J. Miller throughout the film are some of the best off-the-cuff comedy I have seen in a long time. 

For those unaware, Deadpool is a part of the X-Men universe and being a Fox property this meant they had access to a few, lesser, X-Men. Using Colossus (voiced by Stefan Kapicic), Negasonic Teenage Warhead (Brianna Hildebrand), Angel Dust (Gina Carano), and our main villain AJAX (Ed Skrein) they are able to quietly set this movie in a familiar world. This also furthers the notion that Fox has really gotten a handle on the X-Men universe, they understand a story doesn't necessarily need to connect and continue on from the last one. They get that if you just make a good movie, with a good story, and good characters then audiences will embrace it. 

This is hardly your average X-Men movie however as Deadpool spends the majority of the film skewering his enemies into nothing more than a bloody pile of flesh and bone. This is a large part of why the 'R' rating was necessary for this project, without the ultra violence, adult language, and humor this is just another average comic book movie. These unique qualities are what allow this character to stand on its own and actually be something we remember. We saw what happens when you water Wade Wilson down for the average PG-13 audience in Wolverine: Origins and it was a train wreck. So much so that it is openly made fun of throughout this film. 

In a year where the phrase "superhero fatigue" is bound to be thrown around often and loosely it is quite refreshing to see the first one of 2016 be so unique and absurdly entertaining. Furthermore this opens up countless new opportunities for studios and other adult comic book properties as this film finally proves that an 'R' rating is a deathwish for a film as long as it has it's audiences and is made well. After seeing one of the greatest marketing campaigns in movie history is comforting to know that it was hardly the best thing to come out of this property. If you are looking for the first huge movie of 2016 it is already here, check out Deadpool this weekend on the big screen and show studios that they can make more movies like this. 

As always, thanks for reading and I am Zach Who Watches Movies. You can find me anytime on twitter @ZachWWMovies, smell ya later!

MOVIE REVIEW: The Boy (2016)

The Boy (2016)

Horror, Thriller

Directed By: William Brent Bell

As most horror fans know, January and February is typically a dumping ground for disappointing movies. It is the time of year that audiences are at their lowest numbers and studios usually use the time to dish out their least worthy properties. So when I first started seeing previews for The Boy, the latest film from William Brent Bell, it came off as another in a long line of mid winter duds that we see every year. This is hardly the case and thanks to some decent word of mouth and the opportunity to see what Lauren Cohan (The Walking Dead) could do on the big screen I made sure to check this flick out before it had finished its run in theaters. 

Like many other genre films, The Boy keeps the plot simple. Greta (Lauren Cohan) is looking to get away from her past life which leads her to England, where she takes a job as a nanny for an aging couple. Upon her arrival she is shocked to learn that the "boy" she will be taking care of is actually a porcelain doll that represents the couples lost child. She has her reservations but the money is too good to pass up and even though she feels she is taking advantage of this elderly couple it all seems harmless enough. When her new employer's leave and strange things begin to happen around the house she starts to believe that this doll isn't just a doll and that maybe not all of their son was lost all those years ago.

Based on synopsis alone, this film hardly seems like anything we haven't seen before. Girl shows up at a house with a creepy doll, creepy doll then begins to torture her and make her question her sanity, and for the first two acts this is mostly the case.  It is in the final act that this film separates itself from all others like it and falls completely down the rabbit hole. Not to say that this is the most original genre film either, because it isn't, what it does is take cliches and tropes the audience knows so well and twists them in a way we haven't necessarily seen before, all while paying homage to classic films like The People Under the Stairs. 

Going into this I still had the bad taste in my mouth from 2014's Anabelle, a film that had a ton of promise and even an R rating but couldn't deliver on a single punch. So going into this, a film with a PG-13 rating (something genre fans are finally starting to realize isn't always a bad thing), I doubted how this film could actually scare or impress me. Now most of the film isn't "jump out of your seat" scary but it manages to get under your skin and make you feel quite uncomfortable at times and with a wickedly clever finale this film managed to do more than I thought possible. 

It is nice to see Lauren Cohan making her transition to the big screen, we have seen plenty of big TV starts try and make the change recently and fail (just look at half of the Game of Thrones cast) so I enjoyed seeing her thrive in this film. She is as good, if not better than she has ever been on TWD and without her this film doesn't get passed the first act. I am happy to see some quality back in a studio horror film, especially one that came out in January, and I'd like to see many more like this going forward. 2016 is looking to be another solid year for genre fans and The Boy is wonderful way to get it all started, if you have been holding back on this one take the leap and check it out before it leaves theaters. 

As always, thanks for reading and I am Zach Who Watches Movies. You can find me anytime on twitter @ZachWWMovies, smell ya later!

MOVIE REVIEW: Spotlight (2015)

Spotlight (2015)

Biography, Drama, History

Directed By: Tom McCarthy

History has always been best taught through film, this is something I believe now and always will. The best way to show someone the true impact of what came before is to actually show them what happened. Even when films pick and choose what to tell you the story can be enough to inspire one to go home and research on their own, and when you are able to paint a picture of what it was like it is much easier to comprehend. It doesn't need to be an event from fifty or one hundred years ago, as director Tom McCarthy has shown us with his recent film Spotlight. Taking us back just 15 years to 2001-02, a time that most of us would consider recent memory, he is able to enlighten audiences to one of the most horrific tragedies this world has ever known. 

The film centers on a group of investigative journalists at The Boston Globe called "Spotlight" and their uncovering of the massive conspiracy within the local Catholic Church. "Spotlight" is a small team of journalists who investigate one story at a time, looking to break open the secrets of their city. When they get asked to take on a story about Catholic priests molesting children, and the cover up of these molestations by higher powers, the team is more than ready to investigate. What they would uncover over the next almost year is more devastating and disgusting than any of us could have ever imagined. 

At just over two hours this film is incredibly paced, moving from one piece of the story to the next I never felt a dull moment. They rip your heart out and throw it in your face in the opening two minutes and it never lets up from there, with the stories seeming to get worse and worse with each passing scene. Tom McCarthy has accomplished the near impossible by making a news crew sitting around an office for two hours some of the most intense and riveting cinema you will see all year. 

When the story broke in 2002 it made big waves, but reading text on paper can only go so far. Seeing these people's story told on screen I felt I got so much more of the impact of what happened. Watching Mark Ruffalo's character get angrier and angrier as the film moves on until he finally snaps gives you a whole new idea of how these things actually affect people. We have been reading about priests abusing children for years but it isn't until it is shown in a context like this, that breaks it down in the most simplistic ways so anyone can understand, that people begin to get a grasp of the severity of it. 

Making any film that focuses on religion or the people of religion is a huge risk, making one that damns the entire system is like walking into a minefield blindfolded, much like it was for the Spotlight team when writing this story. They constantly were being contacted by members of the church or the community that thought they should give the investigation up, even while keeping it all top secret it seemed anyone involved with the church knew what was happening. It's incredible to see how far people will go to blindly defend and institution that has lied to them for centuries just because it is something that they were raised with. 

In a film where most of the scenes are journalists sitting around a desk the acting is clearly important, and incredible performances from the entire cast truy shape this movie into the heartbreaking masterpiece that it is. Michael Keaton, Rachel McAdams, and Stanley Tucci are all playing at the top of their game delivering essential performances however, it is Mark Ruffalo and Liev Schreiber that stand out the most with both delivering some of the best work we have ever seen from them. Schreiber has a small role and is only in a handful of scenes but his character is crucial and his departure from his usual larger than life self is fantastic. Ruffalo steals the show though, He is the character that I as a viewer connected most with, the anger and pain he feels by the end of the movie I shared with him entirely and when he finally breaks down I was ready to do the same. 

Spotlight is an essential film, it opens the doors on so many ignored aspects of not just Catholicism, but of religion in general and that for all the good it has done it has also done just as much negative. Not only that but it shows how easily people will turn a blind eye to protect the sanctity of something they have known for so long. It is constantly thrown in our faces throughout the film that this story is hardly the first we knew of child abuse in the church, it is just the first time anyone with the power actually tried to do something. Leaving the theater the crowd was maybe the most somber I have ever seen while leaving a film, many eyes were red with tears and no one had a smile on their face. It is a heavy movie to take in and it won't leave you feeling good about your local church, but continuing to turn a blind eye is infinitely worse. 

As always, thanks for reading and I am Zach Who Watches Movies. You can find me anytime on twitter @ZachWWMovies, smell ya later!