The Best o’ the Rest
There were a lot of movies out last year besides the previous 35 on the ends of the spectrum. Here are some highlights from the rest of the films I saw in 2018.
ROBERT REDFORD’S FAREWELL PERFORMANCE in THE OLD MAN AND THE GUN
If there’s a Greek god of suaveness crowded onto the pantheon on Mount Olympus, you can be sure that Robert Redford is his emissary on Earth. The guy is 82 years old and could still probably get any woman he wants. Ostensibly his final film in front of the camera as he’s announced his retirement from acting, Old Man is a fun romp, but it wouldn’t work if he didn’t have the charisma cranked up to 11, and boy does he. It’s a hell of a performance to go out on.
SCOOBY DOO & BATMAN: THE BRAVE AND THE BOLD
I couldn’t quite find the room to put it on my “best of” list proper, but I loved so much about this crazy Saturday Morning mash-up that it had to at least merit a mention. It is essentially 75 minutes of pure, uncut childhood snorted directly to the pleasure centers of the brain. It rides that impossibly thin line between comedic homage and parody. Yes, they gently poke fun at the wonky conventions of the Silver Age-style Batman and the goofy formula of Scooby Doo, but they do it while managing to respect and celebrate their respective legacies. As an added bonus, the animation bucks the trend of other WB DC features by being good. (It’s unfortunate that it only came out on DVD while visually weaker films got 4K releases.) I cannot recommend this enough for geeky parents who want to have fun watching something with their kids, instead of slogging through flaming garbage like Peter Rabbit or The Emoji Movie.
THOMAS LENNON as MICHAEL O’DONOGHUE in A FUTILE AND STUPID GESTURE
I never would have believed it if I hadn’t seen it, but State-alum Thomas Lennon, in a break from starring in bad studio comedies as beta male secondary characters, absolutely slays as the volcanic writer who helped put National Lampoon on the map and became the first head writer for Saturday Night Live. Seeing him smoke his cigarello over a bundle of dynamite, mailed to him by a very disgruntled reader, makes for one of the better psychotic moments in film this year. I suggest someone make a spin-off biopic with him toot suite.
THE TROLOLO SONG in PACIFIC RIM: UPRISING
My favorite weird pop cultural reference this year did not come from the overstuffed Ready Player One, but instead from a movie that came out the week before; as the giant, robotic Jaegers race into battle with a trio of monstrous kaiju, a Russian teen pops on the classic YouTube clip of a man singing incredibly catchy nonsense in a style similar to what was on the Lawrence Welk show at the time. Why? Because it “relaxes” him. I cackled. (I was also glad to know that Leon Bridges’ Coming Home album will still be listened to after the monster apocalypse.)
DAVID TENNANT in BAD SAMARITAN
Bad Samaritan is not a good movie, but David Tennant, portraying an equestrian-obsessed serial killer, gives the kind of weird, hammy performance in it that makes one wonder how he’s not the first name on everyone’s villainous casting lists, especially after his turn in Jessica Jones. At the time, I commented that the film reminded me of the b-movie programmers that used to pop up in the 60s and 70s whose entertainment value would rest completely upon the shoulders of genre greats like Vincent Price or Peter Cushing giving a performance which elevated an otherwise completely forgettable film to being watchable. The movie’s game of cat and mouse is mostly flat thanks to the uncharismatic “hero” of the film and Dean Devlin’s direction, but Tennant is definitely worth tracking it down for.
THE PLEASURABLE STUPIDITY of RAMPAGE
Rampage is also not a good movie in any traditional sense, but it has a goofy charm to it that will absolutely coax many fans of goofy monster flicks into having fun. Cribbing a good deal of its plot from the nearly scienceless sci-fi of the 50’s and 60s (especially an obscure Bert I. Gordon flick called “Beginning of the End,” featured many moons ago on Mystery Science Theater 3000), it’s unbelievably stupid, but in a way that had me grinning from ear to ear when it came time for the audacious climax. Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson has found himself on both sides of the “good dumb” and “bad dumb” movie scale, but much like the majority of the Fast and Furious films, I feel like this one firmly places its thumb on the “good dumb” side.
PETER and X-FORCE in DEADPOOL 2
Admittedly, I was left cold by the story in Deadpool 2, but I loved a lot of the individual parts of the film. The best example of this is Peter, a guy who shows up to interview for a spot on the X-Force team, despite a significant lack of superpowers, because he saw the ad on Linkedin and thought it looked like fun. The mustachioed regular guy (who gets nicknamed “Sugar Bear”) manages to just barely outlive most of the team and is exactly the sort of silly but clever moviemaking I appreciate about these films. The only thing that would have been better is if they’d kept him out of the advertisements so he could have been a surprise. Even better, his very existence even manages to be an insult to Dopinder the cabbie, who is trying to break into the mercenary business and has a great character thread through the movie. He’s only part of the greatness though, because the whole X-Force gag, in which Deadpool is responsible for the horrible deaths of many superheroes, is gut-wrenchingly hilarious.
FRED SAVAGE in ONCE UPON A DEADPOOL
Speaking of Deadpool 2, its December rerelease in a PG-13 cut of the film would have probably been a complete wash if it hadn’t been for a kidnapped Fred Savage being forced to listen to the story from a recreation of his bedroom in The Princess Bride. Serving as the voice of the audience, his running commentary that keeps interrupting the film felt so close to my own genuine reactions upon seeing it the first time that I almost feel as if it was cribbed from my review. It makes you realize that Savage probably does not get enough credit for his comedic timing. He is the MVP of what could be cynically looked at as a strange cash-grab and attempt to prime audiences for a watered-down version of the character in the wake of the Disney sale.
DONALD GLOVER’S LANDO in SOLO
Solo managed to avoid being the great Lucasfilm dumpster fire it seemed destined to become after its troubled production, and proved to be a fun, if marginal, Star Wars installment. Ultimately it felt hampered from becoming great by Kathleen Kennedy and the Kasdans’ desire to not allow Star Wars to expand and breath, but this was still not enough to stop it from being a good movie.(Of course, I would love to have seen Lord and Miller’s version, especially given my #2 film this year.) In the end, it feels like a two-hour version of the River Phoenix intro from Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. One place it excelled beyond my wildest expectations, however, was the use of Donald Glover as a young Lando Calrissian. In the role, he somehow manages to channel Billy Dee Williams without ever doing a straight up impression of him, and turning what was already a favorite Star Wars character into the upper echelon of movie characters, period. Oozing charm like crazy, he stole the entire movie out from under some veteran character actors, including a very solid Woody Harrelson. As a fan since the Derrick Comedy days, through Community and his first Childish Gambino mixtapes, into the entertainer he has become, the question that’s starting to form is, “What can’t Donald do?” (By the way, Colt 45? You really need to make some commercials with him and Billy Dee.)
THE STUNTS in ACTION POINT
Action Point almost made my “Most Disappointing” list, despite giving it a marginally positive review, because the pieces are there to make a better movie and they just don’t coalesce. The plot is a solid idea. The cast is game and (Chris Pontias aside) they are up to the task of trying to make this tribute to both the lackadaisical nature of the late 70s/early 80s, and the snobs vs slobs comedies that were born from that era, work. Johnny Knoxville in particular continues to show that he’s got an odd charm about him, and he’s honestly perfect for this kind of material. I think the way Jackass is infused with his personality is what makes it the only show of its kind that I actually really enjoy. When the movie works, it’s largely because of him and the incredible physical toll he takes upon himself to perform the stunts. The end credits feature a blooper reel and, taking after the Hong Kong films of Jackie Chan, show the aftermath of the things he’s doing to himself. It feels entirely earned. I have my fingers crossed that Knoxville doesn’t become another mean clown in his old age, addicted to painkillers like other talented physical comedians who sacrifice their bodies for laughs. He goes flying in this film, from firehoses, go-kart tracks, and even a catapult. He also drinks Schlitz with a bear, which goes a long way with me.
THE PINATA STORE SHOOTOUT in PEPPERMINT
Look, this isn’t any kind of an all-timer action sequence like we got with Atomic Blonde last year. It doesn’t even push the movie officially into “good” territory. But anytime a person shoots someone in the foot from under a shelving unit, and then splatters their brains when they collapse to the floor, it is going to get high marks from me.
JIM CUMMINGS in CHRISTOPHER ROBIN
There are some voices in animation which are like a warm blanket. For Transformers fans, there’s Peter Cullen as Optimus Prime. For Scooby-Doo lovers, it’s Frank Welker’s 50 year career as Fred. For Disneyphiles, it’s Jim Cummings’ wonderful Winnie the Pooh. He may not have originated the voice for the silly old bear; he’s playing on the version created by Sterling Holloway back in the 60s, but he’s been at it long enough that he’s synonymous with the notorious honey glutton, and has taken over as Tigger as well. It’s a shame the movie was a cliché-riddled house of cards, but I’m so glad I got to hear his voice coming from these classic characters once again.
THE DEATH OF SUPERMAN in THE DEATH OF SUPERMAN
The Death of Superman is one of the defining Superman stories, not necessarily even because of the story itself, which was hyped out the wazoo by a breathless press at the time, but because of the aftermath with epilogues like World without a Superman and Reign of the Supermen. This is the third time some version of the story has been done as a movie, starting with the first “DC Direct” animated film, Superman: Doomsday, and in a broader context by Zach Snyder to spectacular confusion and anger in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. This version of Death of Superman is one of the long line of DC animated DTV films, and one of a series of loosely continuing films that have been made following the company wide “reboot” with the New 52 (which is precisely where they lost me as a reader.) While the film itself is pretty well written and pretty poorly animated, one part that they absolutely nail is the emotional stakes when Superman actually passes away, beaten to a pulp by the alien dubbed Doomsday, using the last of his strength to save Lois Lane. A Lois that Clark Kent has just revealed his secret identity to because he loves her. There’s a real impact for fans to see him cradled in Lois’ arms that simply doesn’t exist in the other versions. Isn’t it funny how some ink and paint can outdo a tentpole film with a budget that had to hit at least $250 million dollars? I look forward to the follow-up film WB Animation has in store for 2019.
THE UNAPOLOGETIC PULP of AQUAMAN
When I reviewed Thor: Ragnarok last year, I called it a good version of Flash Gordon, while stipulating that didn’t mean I don’t enjoy Flash Gordon; I think Flash Gordon is a hoot. The Aquaman film is not the “good” version of Flash Gordon, but simply the underwater one, and it left me laughing in similar fashion. It is unabashedly silly in the manner of pulp novels like Doc Savage or the works of Edgar Rice Burroughs. Take, for example, the wide use of undersea commandos invading the surface in water-filled spacesuits, rayguns at the ready. If that isn’t right out of a Commando Cody or Crash Corrigan serial, I don’t know what is. While it’s certainly not a great film, it is one of the more successful attempts I’ve seen at bringing that kind of material to the big screen with a (mostly) straight face. James Wan fills the screen with all sorts of neat stuff and sends the titular hero not just to Atlantis, but to several far-flung locations that are the stuff of old-fashioned adventure yarns about treasure hunters and explorers. Considering how successful most of the attempts at this kind of loopy sci-fi have been, this feels like a risky stab at the character, yet it ends up being an oddly sound decision to go even farther back to the kind of fiction that inspired his creation. Even if I didn’t love it, I was strangely charmed by it.
FASHION STYLE MART HUT from THE GOD INSIDE MY EAR
The Lynchian, surrealistic, low-budget indie from director Joe Badon provided one of the better fake corporate business names I’ve heard in my time; very on the nose in a good way.
DISNEY’S RETURN TO ANIMATION in MARY POPPINS RETURNS
It may not be perfect (there’s clearly some digital assists going on which are not as well integrated as in some of their previous features from when the tech was new), but just having something that mostly looks hand-drawn is a nice change of pace now that Disney has almost completely abandoned the practice. Hopefully the fact that it’s looked at as one of the bright spots of the film will have some impact when it comes time to set a slate for the company and allow some leeway in deciding what medium will work best for future features.
JUDE LAW as DUMBLEDORE in FANTASTIC BEASTS: THE CRIMES OF GRINDELWALD
There are a lot of questionable choices this franchise has made with the prequel series, but casting Jude Law as a younger version of Dumbledore certainly isn’t one of them. In fact, I’d say he may be the best of the three actors to portray him in regards to making him seem quick-witted, wise, and funny, but with a superiority complex that can lead to questionable choices. There’s definitely the makings of a man who would be very kind to the boy he keeps in the dark as he is raised to be sacrificed.
KURT RUSSELL in THE CHRISTMAS CHRONICLES
A joyful performance in search of a better movie, Russell’s Santa Clause is a breath of fresh air. With a bit of Jack Burton’s swagger and Ego’s “been there done that” brand of immortality, he is far from the jolly old elf of legend. Yet he maintains a strange sense of authenticity; something with which almost no other part of the North Pole mythology manages to escape. As much as ever, Kurt is an American treasure. (Side note: did anyone else wince along with the characters when the shrewish wife tore up that Mickey Mantle rookie card?)
THE AMBITION OF THE FINAL 20 MINUTES of MOLLY
Molly is a low-budget indie film from the Netherlands about a girl wandering in a post-apocalyptic landscape, you know, as you do when all the bowling alleys have been wrecked. It actually looks great, taking the opposite approach of most of these kinds of films and cranking the color saturation up the dial instead of washing everything out. What’s shocking is that it attempts to film its entire climax in the same style as Birdman, making it look like one long, continuous take for about 20 minutes. It doesn’t always work: some of the fight choreography is poor (even if it is somewhat more realistic because of that), there’s a laughable attempt at making a woman look like a cyborg, and the main villain’s acting is just plain bad. However, what’s amazing is that they would even attempt something so audacious on their budget, which could sink the film if it doesn’t work, and then have a lot of it actually land.
THE OPENING of OVERLORD
Overlord may not be reinventing the wheel when it comes to horror, but as a slice of diesel punky-cum-EC Comics-style pulp, it certainly succeeds. Most everything simply works to create an atmosphere of doom with a backdrop of war-torn France. Despite reports dating back to last year, JJ Abrams has denied that this was ever intended to be part of the Cloverfield series, and that’s just a shame because it would certainly have been a better entry than the Cloverfield Paradox. It would probably even have been considered a move to right the ship, as it’s a much better sci-fi horror film which would have shown just how much Bad Robot was willing to stretch the anthology aspect of the series. And given the lackluster box office, it likely still would have benefitted from the name recognition, even after most people were disappointed by the Super Bowl stunt. An incredible, nerve-wracking opening sequence in which the characters are flown across enemy lines is the highlight of the film, with them parachuting over their objective in occupied territory while their plane is blown in half by Nazi ordinance. It’s as intense as any serious war movie of the last twenty years.
JOHN CENA’S DECEPTICONS LINE in BUMBLEBEE
I’m sorry, I know it’s an obvious joke, but it made me laugh anyway.
So, there’s the wrap-up. What were your highs and lows from the last year? Feel free to let us know in the comments or on our Facebook page!
