Fantastic Fest 2015 Review: THE MARTIAN

The Martian.

Director: Ridley Scott.

Writer: Drew Goddard, based on the book by Andy Weir.

Actors: Matt Damon, Jessica Chastain, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Jeff Daniels, Sean Bean, Kate Mara, Sebastian Stan and Michael Peña.

The premise of the The Martian is a pretty simple survival movie. Matt Damon's Matt Watney gets stranded on Mars by his crew-mates from the Ares III mission after an emergency evacuation and must now figure out how to survive with a very limited supply of resources with help coming at its earliest in four year's time.

Director Ridley Scott takes this premise and makes the most of it with this movie based on the novel by first-time author Andy Weir. With Damon's very hilariously dry humor what would be a totally dire situation is actually much more life affirming. Rounded out by a large ensemble cast with a lot of famous actors, this is the best Scott movie in a long time.

During the movie we follow three sets of groups, first is Watney as he jerry-rigs the hell out of the NASA camp that was left behind to survive with what is left. Then there's the crew that accidentally left him behind led by Jessica Chastain's Commander Lewis who is on their way back from Mars early. Then, back on Earth we have NASA big wigs Vincent Kapoor (Ejiofor), Teddy Sanders (Daniels), and Mitch Henderson (Bean) who are all trying to navigate logistics, bureaucracy and science itself to try to rescue Watney.

Damon holds his own during his sections of the movie. We see that his character is very intelligent and coincidentally happens to be a botanist which is how he figures out how to plant crops on Mars. But equally important is his up-beat attitude and sense of humor. While no one could really understand what being marooned by yourself on a planet four years away from home would feel like, it's not crazy to assume that keeping one's mental health stable. When he does video journals he's cracking jokes all while spouting off seemingly-legit scientific talk and even starts billing himself as international pirate by the end of the movie.

This is also one of the few movies that could be said that 3D is a must. There are many overhead shots of the planet and the 3D makes the planet seem much more daunting and beautiful at the same time. Shot in Jordan which has red deserts, this version of Mars is one of the most beautiful that's been put on screen. In addition, to that there are scenes with dust storms and out in space that benefit greatly from the added depth.

Going off the cast list, it would be easy to assume that the relatively well-known would be distracting but they all bring their own strengths to make the movie stronger, for example Kristen Wiig brings her really dry comedic talent to her character while Jeff Daniels seems to be channeling his Will McAvoy from The Newsroom. 

The biggest problem of the movie is how it's forced to pass time. There are so many title cards telling us X months or weeks have passed and then there's various montages throughout the movie that get repetitive. It is totally understandable to use these devices given how long the story is, but it gets tiresome by the time the movie ends. And many of the characters have a tendency of being very thinly portrayed and they all fall into some kind of "mission crew" archetype with peppers of individuality thrown here and there ,but it's not quite enough to make any of the Ares or NASA crew feel like fleshed out characters

Despite it's 141 minute run time, the movie is still exciting with plenty of action sequences that are entertaining to watch. All of the actors come together to make a stronger movie while not being overly flashy, there's some of the best use of the 3D in a long time. Plus, the script by Drew Goddard is strong with it's emphasis on the will to survive and persevere. Simply put this is one of the best space movies in a long time.


Tweet

ELYSIUM Review- Jonesy's Take

ELYSIUM

Directed by: Neill Blomkamp

Written by: Neill Blomkamp

Starring: Matt Damon, Jodie Foster, Sharlto Copley, Wagner Moura, and Diego Luna

Synopsis: A terminally ill man seeks to cure himself by breaking into Elysium, a satellite where only the rich people of Earth reside. 

THE ZERO THEOREM Trailer Is Simply Gorgeous

Terry Gilliam is a master director even if his box office doesn't show it. THE IMAGINARIUM OF DR. PARNASSUS is a vastly underrated movie and he's been keeping a pretty low key ever since. Now, the trailer for his newest movie, THE ZERO THEOREM sort of came out of nowhere and I couldn't be happier. Check out the trailer after the break.

Full ELYSIUM Trailer Drops So Much Sassy Matt Damon

In a summer that seems to be filled with a post-apotcalyptic stories, ELYSIUM seems to be one of the few stand out thrillers. Maybe that's the biased towards director Neill Blomkamp, who directed one of my favorites, DISTRICT 9. In ELYSIUM, Blomkamp is back telling an allegorical story of class struggle with the poor having to live on Earth, but the rich live in a space city called Elysium.

We got a teaser trailer a couple months ago, but now we get a giant, full trailer which elaborates on more details of why Matt Damon is trying to get up to Elysium. This trailer could be filled with some plot spoilers, so I would steer clear if you want to go in completely blind.

But otherwise, check it out after the break!

ELYSIUM Trailer Drops!

Neill Blomkamp burst onto the movie scene in 2009 with DISTRICT 9. The film was smart, original, and ended up being one of my favorites last year. Now, he's back with his sophomore feature, ELYSIUM, which looks just as amazing. He's sticking with the sic-fi background, but from the looks of the first trailer, it's telling a broader story.

Here's the synopsis:

In the year 2154, two classes of people exist: the very wealthy, who live on a pristine man-made space station that is disguised as a massive floating city called Elysium, and the rest, who live on an overpopulated, ruined Earth. The people of Earth are desperate to escape the planet’s crime and poverty, and they critically need the state-of-the-art medical care available on Elysium – but some in Elysium will stop at nothing to enforce anti-immigration laws and preserve their citizens’ luxurious lifestyle. The only man with the chance to bring equality to these worlds is Max Coburn (Matt Damon), a 29 year-old ordinary guy in desperate need to get to Elysium. With his life hanging in the balance, he reluctantly takes on a dangerous mission – one that pits him against Elysium’s mayor, Secretary Jessica Delacourt (Jodie Foster) and her hard-line forces – but if he succeeds, he could save not only his own life, but millions of people on Earth as well.

Check the new trailer after the break.

THE BOURNE LEGACY Full Trailer Drops and Makes Me Not Want to Ride a Motorcycle

It's hard to imagine a Bourne film without Matt Damon, but if this new trailer is any indication, the marketing team is trying very hard to make sure we know that we're viewing a parallel part to original trilogy. The first teaser didn't give us much, but this new trailer, definitely shows how much ass Jeremy Renner is going to kick.

Check it out after the jump.

WE BOUGHT A ZOO Soundtrack Review: The Sigur Ros/Jonsi Mixtape You've Been Waiting For

Javi here returning with another soundtrack review. This time we have the soundtrack for the new Cameron Crowe wanna-be feel good movie, WE BOUGHT A ZOO, starring one Matt Damon. I have not been particularly interested in this movie, mostly because of how prominent Scarlett Johanson seems to be in the marketing, and she drives me up the wall. Regardless, the soundtrack was put together by Sigur Ros singer/solo artist Jonsi (pronounced Jonesy), which had a lot of people who usually don't care about Cameron Crowe movies very excited.

Hit the jump for the full review.

The Adjustment Bureau- She said

Directed by George Nolfi

Written by George Nolfi

Starring: Matt Damon, Emily Blunt, Anthony Mackie, and John Slattery

Synopsis: A politician falls in love with a dancer, but fate has other plans for them.

Matt Damon just had his world turned upside down. He catches a glimpse of the world behind our doors of fedora toting men who control everyone's fate by their Nook-type books. These men are The Bureau. Damon wasn't suppose to see into this world. None of us are. Our paths are written, and if we ever veer off our path, The Bureau steps in with a missed bus, chance encounter, computer outage, or spilled coffee. However, this doesn't bode well with Damon because he has fallen in love with Emily Blunt and will stop at nothing to be with her. The Bureau has other plans.

Thus our conflict is presented. David Norris (Damon) is a young, up and coming senator from New York. He loses his senate race, but meets Elise (Blunt) who inspires him to make the best concession speech I've ever heard. This boosts his popularity, and he is set to run again in four years. For his fate to be set, he is never suppose to run into Elise again; however, as chance would have it, he does. Now, The Bureau has to take drastic measures to keep them apart. Damon and Blunt have fantastic chemistry. I found myself wanting them to be together through all their trials.

Through the love story, the movie actually brings an interesting intellectual debate of whether humans have free will or if everything is planned out for us. Damon doesn't accept that he isn't suppose to be with Blunt, so he tries to outwit and outplay the fedora brigade with the help of a somewhat rogue agent (how convenient). The fedoras try to reason with him; if he doesn't see her again, he'll eventually become the President and she will be a successful choreographer, and if he doesn't listen, then their dreams won't come true. Tough choice.

I wanted the movie to go deeper with the philosophical questions of free will versus fate. Are humans even capable of free will? Or were we given that opportunity in the past but our own hubris and greed caused turmoil for the human race? If we were made aware of the fact we didn't have free will, could we learn from our past mistakes and given that opportunity again? But the heart of the story ended up being if love between two people can conquer any obstacle. Not nearly as interesting or discussion worthy.

The problem isn't with any of the characters but the wannabe Matrix/Inception love story. The ideas were there and could have grown into something truly unique. However, everything just seems to fall short by the end as we watch Damon fight for his love, and we're left with the advice that anyone with a hat could be messing with our free will.

Tweet

True Grit

True Grit

Directed: Joel Coen; Ethan Coen

Written: Joel Coen; Ethan Coen and Charles Portis (novel)

Starring: Jeff Bridges, Matt Damon, Josh Brolin, and Hailee Steinfeld

Synopsis: A tenacious girl enlists the help of the grizzled U.S. Marshall to help

find her father's killer while a Texas Ranger tags along.

True Grit- She said

I never really watched Westerns.  Ever. I haven't seen the classics like Unforgiven or The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly.  The genre just never really appealed to me.  Honestly if it wasn't for the Coen brothers, I'm not sure I would have seen True Grit.  That's pretty awful to say, but it's the truth.  I would have probably gotten around to watching the movie eventually, but the genre is never a top my list.

Boy howdy was I wrong to go into this with any low expectations.  I loved the movie.  Now, the plot is pretty basic, and it never strays away and tries to become complex.  A young girl wants revenge on her father's death, and she enlists a mercenary to help her with that task.  However, what is brilliant from the Coen brothers is their ability to create such dynamic and interesting characters.  This really becomes a character film.  The absolute stand out star is young Hailee Steinfeld as the vocal Mattie Ross.  To be a relative newcomer and to hold your own with Jeff Bridges and Matt Damon is damn impressive.  She spits out her dialogue with such honesty, wit and believability that it made me jealous.  She is fantastic in every scene she's in.

Of course Matt Damon as LaBoeuf and Jeff Bridges as Rooster Cogburn have tremendous chemistry.  You can tell there's a trust between the actors in screen.  They are able to play off each other's nuances and quirky traits with such ease. Another character I loved was Barry Pepper as Lucky Ned Pepper, the villain that has eluded Rooster for years.  It was Lucky Ned that I realized how talented the Coen brothers are at writing and creating character.  Lucky Ned could easily have been written as your standard Western bad guy with bad teeth, dirty skin, and with a drinking problem.  However, Ned has a few scenes that show he's a lot more dynamic.  I won't go any further because then we'll get into spoiler territory, but he's not exactly what you expect. 

Cinematographer Roger Deakins does a tremendous job in capturing the natural beauty of the landscape.  There are many breathtaking frames of Mattie, Rooster and LaBoeuf riding into the sunset.  The Texas landscape has never looked more gorgeous.  It made me want to ride off into the mountains, but I don't care for horses.

Overall, this movie is superb.  Usually a very generic plot bothers me; however, the Coen brothers used a simple plot to their advantage to make a movie about characters.  This is one of the Coen's best movies to date.  I actually wish they would write a play for the stage because I believe they would create something brilliant.  If anything, go see it for Hailee Steinfeld as Mattie Ross.  Her performance alone is worth the price of admissions.

True Grit-He Said

I'm not a fan of Westerns, and I have a feeling this is very much a cultural reason.  Growing up, I was more interested in sci-fi stuff that my Grandpa showed me, and cartoons that were popular at the time.  I never pretended to be a cowboy while playing with friends in the playgroud; I was a ninja turtle or a ghostbuster.

As my appreciation for movies grew more and more, I still have yet to be interested whatsoever by Westerns. Elisabeth Rappe a writer for Film.com, could write and talk those movie for days on and end and even recommended a couple to me, yet I found no connection to them.  On the flip side, the Coen brothers are some of my favorite cliche directors, so when I heard they would be making a remake of a John Wayne Western my interest was piqued.  Then, adding in Jeff Bridges, and I'm totally there.  And True Grit does not dissapoint.

I found the movie to be really interesting; we spend a lot of time getting to know young Mattie Ross (Steinfeld), and her quick witted ways.  Young Ms.Steinfeld is the stand-out star of this movie. She plays the grieving but resolute Mattie with such a great amount of confidence that I hope that she doesn't waste her talents.  What impressed me was the way that the lines were delivered. I got the sensation that if Diablo Cody was a better writer, she would have made Juno's lines sound as great as the ones the Coens wrote for the Mattie Ross character.

I'm going to go on a limb and say that the chemistry between Matt Damon and Jeff Bridges as LaBeouf and Rooster Cogburn is some of the best since seeing Natalie Portman and Mila Kunis in Black Swan.  They fight, bicker and banter in the way old friends with ridiculously huge egos would.  I would go so far and call True Grit one of the best "buddy cop" movies ever. It doesn't matter that you've seen the Straight Lace Cop and  Rouge Veteran archetypes, these two actors make them feel fresh.  The other star of the movie, the fine Lone Star State, and if my sources are correct, the majority of this film was done in the areas around El Paso. Let me tell you, I want to live in a Coen Brothers' Texas; the scenery is breathtaking, the snow has never looked so white or the sky looked so blue.  In a world full of green screen, it feels great to see that there are still very talented filmkmakers making the most out of what they have in nature.

My big complaints of this film have a lot to do with a slightly episodic feel to the movie once LaBeouf, Rooster, and Ross go hunting for Tom Chaney (Brolin).  Something happens, they walk and ride for a while, you start over, repeat and you have a lot of the movie. I won't get into the spoilers of this movie here, but I will say that there is a point of the movie that trades the momentum it had building for something out of left field.  It was reminded me of Luke defeating the Emperor and then fighting Stormtroopers for 20 minutes afterwards. 

Overall, this one of the Coen's best works. It's a fine story that is a thrill and joy to watch.  There's not much point in really writing about the story because the characters are the biggest draws in this movie.  I will say I wish that if they had kept the character moments while crafting a more complex plot.  Overall, I encourage anyone that is even remotely curious about this movie to go watch it, and anyone that wants to see a thinking man's action/Western movie to go see it.  It will definitely be in my top movies of this year.