Creed II

First Hit: For something that started in 1976 and having 7 previous films, it holds together well enough.

Rocky (Sylvester Stallone) is getting long in the tooth, still wears that funky round hat that makes his head a roundish funny shape, and is managing Adonis Creed (Michael B. Jordan). He managed Adonis in the last film as well.

As champion, Adonis is having a good life and decides to ask his longtime partner Bianca (Tessa Thompson) for her hand in marriage. What makes this set of scenes so good is that he asks Rocky how he asked Adrian, his now deceased wife, for her hand in marriage. For those who saw the Rocky series of films, we can always recall the way Rocky worked up his nerve to ask for her hand. It was hilarious then and it brought up a wonderful memory now.

Adonis’s father Apollo was killed by a Russian fighter called Ivan Drago (Dolph Lundgren) and Rocky, in a fit of rage, fought Ivan and beat him. Ivan’s loss made him become a disrespected person in Russia. So much so that his wife Ludmilla (Brigitte Nielsen) left him for a high-level government official. Raising his son Viktor (Florian Munteanu) alone, he trains Viktor to fight to get the championship belt back and to make the name Drago great again.

Rocky doesn’t want Adonis to fight Viktor because he’d be doing it for the wrong reason. Ignoring Rocky’s advice Adonis fights Viktor.

The fight and boxing ring shots were very good. The story is way to telegraphed which takes away from the film. The nice touch is Rocky reconnecting with this son Robert and grandson Logan.

Stallone is strong as Rocky, a character that he created and enhanced over the years. I loved him bringing the bouncing ball back into a couple of the scenes. Jordan is excellent as Adonis. His softness with Bianca belies the way he makes a living. Thompson is very good as a hearing-impaired musician. Lundgren was very good reprising his role as Ivan. Munteanu was excellent as Ivan’s son Viktor. He showed a great sense of loyalty to his father and it came through during the film. Nielsen was fun to see and she still commands the camera with her powerful look. Phylicia Rashad reprised her role as Adonis mother and Rocky’s close friend. Juel Taylor and Sylvester Stallone wrote a good and predictable screenplay. Steven Caple Jr. did a good job of directing this predictable story with finesse.

Overall: I wasn’t enthralled with this version of the Rocky series.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2

First Hit:  At times funny, tongue in cheek and farfetched, but isn’t strong enough to make it memorable the next day.

The best parts of Volume 1, was the irreverent humor used to make the unbelievable story and places they visit, fun. Volume 2 does all this a little better.

Star-Lord AKA Peter Quill (Chris Pratt) is with his compatriots; Gamora (Zoe Saldana), Drax (Dave Bautista), Baby Groot (Vin Diesel), and Rocket (Bradley Cooper), and they are off on another adventure. They saved the galaxy before now they're here to do it again.

Whom do they save it from? Peter's father Ego (Kurt Russell) and a reluctant Mantis (Pom Klementieff) who is the one person that can make Ego sleep and relax. Also, for different reasons, Yondu (Michael Rooker) and Nebula (Karen Gillan) want to hurt Peter and his crew as well.

After years of not knowing who his father was, all of sudden Peter is confronted with his father, Ego. Ego lives on planet Ego and is a God of sorts. He traveled to many planets to plant his lights, which he controls through his powers. He's looking for a progeny that can assist him in making the light devices to bloom and take over the worlds he’s planted these things on. Additionally, while on the planets planting his light plants, the story has Ego planting his seed in many women on these planets as well. One of them was Peter’s mom, Meredith (Laura Haddock). However out of all the progeny Ego tests to see who can help him activate the lights, Peter is the only one who shares, and has, Ego's super powers.

The problem is Peter’s eclectic family doesn’t buy the Ego’s premise about wanting to be a loving father and when Peter figures out that Ego is planning control and destruction, he knows he has to kill his father.

All through this, Nubula is trying to kill Yondu now that he’s teamed up with Peter and his team. Then there is Stakar Ogord (Sylvester Stallone) who wants to kill Yondu as well.

In the end there is a life and death struggle for the galaxy and the team wins again and I know I’m letting the cat out of the bag, but we all knew the ending anyway.

Pratt is fun, on the edge of silly, but carries the ability to be both serious and irreverent all at the same time. Saldana is wonderful as the illusive Gamora. Bautista has some of the funniest lines and it’s fun to watch him. Diesel is funny and appropriately constrained as small Groot. Cooper as Rocket was fantastic. Klementieff was great as Mantis. I loved the way she danced between surety and lack of confidence. Russell was really engaged and full of life in this part. Gillan was strong as the golden leader of another planet’s race. Rooker was perfect as the guy who wanted to be good and support the team, but also live within the rules of his own clan. Stallone was OK as Ogord. James Gunn and Dan Abnett wrote a perfect irreverent script that held together through a highly improbable story. Gunn did a great job of providing the right level of effects and joyful fun scenes. Everyone got a chance to shine.

Overall:  This was as good and probably better than Volume 1.

Academy Awards - The Oscars

OK, here we are again celebrating another year of film going. Some strong films this year, films that broke box office records, and films that failed. Here are my choices for the following awards and some thoughts around some of them.

• Best Actor - Nominees are:  Bryan Cranston (Trumbo), Matt Damon (The Martin), Leonardo DiCaprio (The Revenant), Michael Fassbender (Steve Jobs) and Eddie Redmayne (The Danish Girl). This is not as strong a field as it was last year. The obvious missing actors are Tom Hanks (Bridge of Spies) maybe because he made it look so easy, and Steve Carell who was so quirky and interesting you just wanted to see what he was going to do next. Both of these were strong performances, yet not in my top two of this listing. Although Cranston's  performance was good, I didn't like the character nor the interpretation. Fassbender was very good, however this role had been done too many times in the last two years. I did not see The Danish Girl therefore I don't have an opinion. However, Damon and DiCapiro's performances were fantastic - beyond amazing. I loved each of them. My guess is that DiCaprio will win the Oscar.
• Best Actress  - Nominees are:  Cate Blanchett (Carol), Brie Larson (Room), Jennifer Lawrence (Joy), Charlotte Rampling (45 Years), and Saoirse Ronan (Brooklyn). This is a strong category although I didn't see 45 Years, the others were great. I also see a missing person from this list and that would be Rooney Mara in Carol as well. Between Cate and Rooney I would have picked Mara because I felt as though her evolution through the film was a more powerful statement. However, she is in the Supporting Actress listing. Out of the nominated list, it comes down to two outstanding performances: Ronan and Blanchett. Lawrence's performance was really good and I was fully engaged with her character, however it did not have the power of Ronan or Blanchett's. Larson was also very strong, however so much of her performance is linked to Jacob Tremblay the young boy that it took away from her own performance. For me I'd like Ronan to get this Oscar in an amazing performance in a  wonderful film.
• Best Supporting Actress  - Nominees are:  Jennifer Jason Leigh (The Hateful Eight), Rooney Mara (Carol), Rachel McAdams (Spotlight), Alicia Vikander (The Danish Girl), and Kate Winslet (Steve Jobs). As I mentioned earlier I think Mara's performance belongs in the Best Actress category. I didn't see The Danish Girl so I'm making my pick without full knowledge of the selections. However, without Mara I think the most interesting and performance is Leigh's. It was so hidden and yet over the top that I was mesmerized each time she opened her mouth and/or the camera focused on her. These are the top two and in my view either probably deserves the Oscar.
• Best Supporting Actor  - Nominees are:  Christian Bale (The Big Short), Tom Hardy (The Revenant), Mark Ruffalo (Spotlight), Mark Rylance (Bridge of Spies), and Sylvester Stallone (Creed). The missing performance is Jacob Tremblay's in Room. He was phenomenal. But this is probably one of the strongest fields in years, so someone had to be left off the list. They were all great and my favorites out of this list are Rylance and Stallone. Rylance had such a small role yet it was so much impact on the film that it was unforgettable. However Stallone will get it for both this performance and his body of work as Rocky Balboa.
• Best Cinematography  - Nominees are:  Ed Lachman (Carol), Robert Richardson (The Hateful Eight), John Seale (Mad Max: Fury Road), Emmaual Lubezki (The Revenant), and Roger Deakins (Sicario). Although Mad Max: Fury Road was big it did not grab me because I thought the film was more on the mindless side. Carol was elegantly shot and fully deserves the nomination. However, The Hateful Eight and The Revenant are over the top amazingly beautiful and powerful. The Hateful Eight deserves a lot of credit for doing so much in one room, while The Revenant wins this award for how shots were made and the perspective by which they were made. The winner - pick.
• Best Adapted Screenplay  - Nominees are:  Charles Randolph and Adam McKay (The Big Short), Nick Hornby (Brooklyn), Phyllis Nagy (Carol), Drew Goddard (The Martian), and Emma Donoghue (Room). Wow, what a list. All great picks. Any one of these could win in any given year. However, my final two would be Randolf and McKay for The Big Short and Hornby for Brooklyn. In the end I'm picking Nick Hornby for Brooklyn because it was a great screenplay and a wonderful film to watch.   
• Best Original Screenplay  - Nominees are:  Matt Charman and Ethan & Joel Coen (Bridge of Spies), Alex Garland (Ex Machina), Pete Docter, Meg LeFauve, and Josh Cooley (Inside Out), Josh Singer and Tom McCarthy (Spotlight), and Jonathan Herman and Andrea Berloff (Straight Outta Compton). Another strong set of contenders. All very different films. In the end I think I like Ex Machina and Spotlight as powerful screen plays for very different reasons. One reflects a horrible set of acts by Catholic Priests and the other about the obsessiveness and controlling nature of technology. In the end I select Josh Singer and Tom McCarthy for Spotlight.
• Best Director  - Nominees are:  Adam McKay (The Big Short), George Miller (Mad Max: Fury Road), Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu (The Revenant), Lenny Abrahamson (Room), and Tom McCarthy (Spotlight). Missing are:  Ridley Scott (The Martian), J.J. Abrams (Star Wars: The Force Awakens), Todd Haynes (Carol), Quentin Tarantino (The Hateful Eight) and John Crowley (Brooklyn). To me this is the most messed up nominee listing. How is Max: Fury Road better directed than all my exceptions? It isn't and doesn't hold a candle to them. Also given my exceptions, I think Abrahamson's delivery is not quite there. Anyway, from the nominee list, I would say it is between McKay, Inarritu, and McCarthy. In the end I'd select McKay (with McCarthy a very close second) because he did the most to keep the film on track. Inarritu had too many long wistful shots. However this listing of nominees is really flawed.
• Best Picture  - Nominees are:   The Big Short, Bridge of Spies, Brooklyn, Mad Max: Fury Road, The Martian, The Revenant, Room, and Spotlight. Missing here is Carol and The Hateful Eight. Mad Max: Fury Road is nowhere in the league as these other nominees and, in my opinion, doesn't deserve to be listed. I simply was board stiff by the one long chase film filled with foolish philosophy. It is hard for me to pick as I loved "Brooklyn" as being a wonderfully executed nostalgic story. I thought "The Big Short" told a compelling story of how our economy tanked. "The Martian" was beautifully delivered and Damon made it happen. "Bridge of Spies" and "Spotlight" are both amazing stories about something that really happened. I was totally engaged and felt they delivered in all ways; education and story. The only thing I didn't like about "The Revenant" was that there were too many long scenic only shots which took away from the story.  In the end, of the listed I'd like to see "The Martian" win but can also see the others winning except Mad Max.

Some other thoughts about films this year:

• "Star Wars: The Force Awakens" was amazingly edited.
• "Ex Machina's" visual effects were very strong and so were scenes in "The Revenant".
• "Anomalisa" and "Inside Out" were both amazing Animated Feature films.
• "Carol" had perfectly detailed costumes and overall set design.
• "Writings on the Wall" the song for "Spectre" was dreadful.

Note: I'll be England sitting in silence for 30 days starting late next week. I may be able to see one more film before I go, but otherwise I won't be seeing any films or posting any reviews until the first week of March.

Thank you for viewing my site.

Creed

First Hit:  This 133 minute film flew by because it was engaging and well done.

I enjoyed the first 4 Rocky films. I didn’t see the 5th because they were deteriorating as the series went on. Of course, like many others, I thought the first Rocky film was wonderful and a great story.

This film feeds off of Rocky IV where Apollo Creed (Carl Weathers) is killed by a Russian fighter. One of Apollo’s out of wedlock children, Adonis Johnson (Michael B. Jordan), never met his father before he died and now carries resentment towards the Creed name and his roots.

He grows up going from foster home to foster home and getting into fights over everything and anything. He likes fighting. Apollo’s wife finds him in juvy and takes Adonis in to raise him, puts him through school and helps him get a great job. But even with a great job, he loves fighting and quits everything to become a professional boxer.

He goes to live in Philadelphia looking for Rock Balboa (Sylvester Stallone) to ask him to become his trainer. When we meet Rocky, he’s a little tired, isn’t engaged with boxing any longer, and runs Adrien’s, his deceased wife’s namesake restaurant. When he discovers that Adonis is Apollo’s son he begrudgingly helps him.

This film is about both Adonis and Rocky growing through their relationship to become better people - together. The boxing scenes are well done, not as violent as the scenes in “Southpaw” or a couple of the earlier “Rocky” films, but they are effective.

This script has Rocky talking to Paulie and Adrian's headstones was vintage Rocky and very touching. Having Adonis meet Bianca (Tessa Thompson) was a throwback to Rocky and Adrian’s budding and then lasting relationship.

Jordan was very good in this part and his ability to be touchy and touching are a wonderful strong point. Stallone was magnificent. I wouldn’t doubt he will receive award nominations for this performance. Subtle, true to the character, and very engaging. Thompson was a great conduit for and in this film. She rounded out the testosterone nature of this film. Phylicia Rashad was perfect as Apollo’s widowed wife and Adonis’s stepmom. Ryan Coogler and Aaron Covington wrote a wonderfully insightful script that brought together wonderful historical aspects of the old Rocky films. Coogler did a great job of putting the script and actors together to make this film really work.

Overall:  This was a thoroughly enjoyable film.

Homefront

First Hit:  Average Statham thriller where he takes on all comers and wins.

Phil Broker (Jason Statham) is a former DEA agent who is taken on an anonymous life with his daughter in a Louisiana small town.

Being outsiders their behavior is scrutinized and when his daughter Maddy (Izabela Vidovic) punches out a classmate, the kids parents decide to make Broker’s life hell for this indiscretion mayhem ensues. Mayhem is headed by the town Meth cooker Morgan “Gator” Bodine (James Franco). He discovers Broker’s past and gets one of Broker’s convicted prisoners to send people to kill Broker. Assisting Gator is Sheryl Mott (Winona Ryder).

Statham is always solid and here he shows up as usual. It will never win an Oscar doing action films, but he’s very solid. Vidovic is great as the 10 year old daughter. One scene when she is lamenting about her recently past mother is great. Franco is pretty good as a “not all at home” meth cooker. Ryder is either a pretty good actress showing the perfect nervousness as a tweaker, or she just showed up showing her past struggles and put them on the screen – she didn’t look very good. Sylvester Stallone and Chuck Logan wrote the screenplay which was solid. Gary Fielder directed this well-paced action thriller.

Overall: Solid action film.