KingProjector93
Joined Dec 2014
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'The Founder' details the rise and rise of fast food titan Mcdonalds, thanks to down on his luck appliance salesman Ray Kroc. One day, he delivers milkshake machines over to a California restaurant with a unique serving and food production system. Seeing the potential in the McDonalds brothers' creation, he attempts to begin franchising it into a bigger property. Of course, the small town, homegrown brothers find success comes at a cost.
Michael Keaton came out of a 2000s funk swinging, not just appearing in bigger projects like Robocop and the MCU Spider-Man, but also with acclaimed roles in the likes of Birdman, Spotlight and this. Keaton imbues Kroc with a combination of charisma, mania and ego to create a fascinating human being with layers. One minute, he's a charming average Joe, looking for a break; the next, a ruthless tycoon. Keaton commands the screen effortlessly, though credit must also go to Nick Offerman and John Carroll Lynch as the McDonalds Brothers. These two have great chemistry together, making you believe in a genuine and loving relationship between them, while also supplying some laughs through their unusual business methods and reactions to Kroc's changes.
'Saving Mr Banks' helmer John Lee Hancock provides us with a good looking film, the bright and often light colour palette with plenty of red and yellow very fitting for the subject and period. Indeed, though this may trivial at first, it's a strong directorial choice to have the film set mostly during the day, contrasting against the increasingly shady practices and deals Kroc makes. It lets the melodrama feel more natural and opens up the world a lot more, letting you feel how much McDonalds' rise changes things.
Robert Siegel's script offers one of the strongest biopics in many years in how completely three dimensional its main cast is. These are fully realized human beings, neither good nor bad, with a set of core values that are often challenged by the demands of franchising McDonalds. While a cutthroat and persistent businessman, Kroc is by no means a cartoon villain, and the Brothers, while sympathetic, are not portrayed as flawless angels who are easily duped. It's an honest look at the world of business and, as the film puts it 'why genius alone isn't successful'. For as wealthy as he ultimately becomes, the film actually feels a bit like a tragedy for Kroc, as his mad pursuit of the American Dream forces him to become increasingly sneaky, dishonest and motivated by profit, alienating those who originally stood by him.
Furthermore, a knowledge of McDonalds history is not essential to one's enjoyment of the film. Many weaker historical films often feel like major events or character motivations are meant to be filled in by your foreknowledge, but here, 'The Founder' walks you through, in great detail, as to the how and why of the chain's success. For example, there are little potshots taken at what would be future McDonalds practices, but the dialogue still works within the scene's context even if you don't get it and don't mesh with the drama or comedy.
In short, 'The Founder' is an absolutely fantastic film, destined to sit with some of the genre's all time greats.
Michael Keaton came out of a 2000s funk swinging, not just appearing in bigger projects like Robocop and the MCU Spider-Man, but also with acclaimed roles in the likes of Birdman, Spotlight and this. Keaton imbues Kroc with a combination of charisma, mania and ego to create a fascinating human being with layers. One minute, he's a charming average Joe, looking for a break; the next, a ruthless tycoon. Keaton commands the screen effortlessly, though credit must also go to Nick Offerman and John Carroll Lynch as the McDonalds Brothers. These two have great chemistry together, making you believe in a genuine and loving relationship between them, while also supplying some laughs through their unusual business methods and reactions to Kroc's changes.
'Saving Mr Banks' helmer John Lee Hancock provides us with a good looking film, the bright and often light colour palette with plenty of red and yellow very fitting for the subject and period. Indeed, though this may trivial at first, it's a strong directorial choice to have the film set mostly during the day, contrasting against the increasingly shady practices and deals Kroc makes. It lets the melodrama feel more natural and opens up the world a lot more, letting you feel how much McDonalds' rise changes things.
Robert Siegel's script offers one of the strongest biopics in many years in how completely three dimensional its main cast is. These are fully realized human beings, neither good nor bad, with a set of core values that are often challenged by the demands of franchising McDonalds. While a cutthroat and persistent businessman, Kroc is by no means a cartoon villain, and the Brothers, while sympathetic, are not portrayed as flawless angels who are easily duped. It's an honest look at the world of business and, as the film puts it 'why genius alone isn't successful'. For as wealthy as he ultimately becomes, the film actually feels a bit like a tragedy for Kroc, as his mad pursuit of the American Dream forces him to become increasingly sneaky, dishonest and motivated by profit, alienating those who originally stood by him.
Furthermore, a knowledge of McDonalds history is not essential to one's enjoyment of the film. Many weaker historical films often feel like major events or character motivations are meant to be filled in by your foreknowledge, but here, 'The Founder' walks you through, in great detail, as to the how and why of the chain's success. For example, there are little potshots taken at what would be future McDonalds practices, but the dialogue still works within the scene's context even if you don't get it and don't mesh with the drama or comedy.
In short, 'The Founder' is an absolutely fantastic film, destined to sit with some of the genre's all time greats.
Loosely adapted from Mark Millar's (Kick-Ass, Kingsman) 'Old Man Logan' comic and directed and co-written by James Manigold, Logan is set in the near future of 2029, where an aging Logan is slowly losing his powers and tending to a sickly Charles Xavier. He is roped into transporting a mysterious girl to North Dakota after a Mexican woman begs for his help. As it turns out, the child is a mutant and very much wanted by nefarious powers.
Jackman has been loyally devoted to the character for many years, and gives his most mature performance to date as a weakened, grizzled Wolverine. His mannerisms, his face, his body language convey a man badly beaten down by the world, always trying to do the right thing and seldom being rewarded for it. Likewise, we see Stewart as a more irritable, slightly lucid Xavier compared to past films, now slowly his intellect to illness and age. It's a tragic but touching showing. Young Dafne Keen as X-23/Laura is a fantastic young actress and capable action star who manages to do a lot with relatively little. She has few lines and even less of an arc, but she controls the screen every time she's on.
Manigold backs this up with incredibly restrained direction and a bleak cinematography style that hammers in the surprisingly defeatist tone of the film, and a good amount of blood in the fights that feels realistic and warranted is just icing on the cake. Marco Beltrami's score, likewise, is equally pulled back on big heroic themes and action beats, and instead functions more as mood music to enhance, rather than dictate, the emotional content of scenes.
This is more firmly a superhero drama with action elements than a full blown action blockbuster, containing probably the smallest amount of action since Ang Lee's 'Hulk' (2003). Those looking for a fun romp with Wolverine are better off with the extended edition of 2013's 'The Wolverine', as this is very much a tale of hopelessness and personal loss. Even the fights are less, satisfying gore baths with Wolverine's claws, and more, unpleasant battles for survival against bigger and bigger odds.
Really, 'Logan' is more like a revisionist Western than a comic book adventure: a bleak story about past glories, finding purpose and the onset of decline, with a heavy focus on character dynamics and relationships. The bonds between Wolverine, Xavier and Laura are the beating heart of the movie, and it can be harrowing to watch at times, but that's very much by design. It exists to be the antithesis of your stereotypical, high adventure comic book yarn, and against the optimism of the other X-Men films.
It's a unique and refreshing superhero film that provides a great sendoff to one of its most iconic performers. It's morbid, but has a powerful emotional core with well rounded characters and a unified vision.
Jackman has been loyally devoted to the character for many years, and gives his most mature performance to date as a weakened, grizzled Wolverine. His mannerisms, his face, his body language convey a man badly beaten down by the world, always trying to do the right thing and seldom being rewarded for it. Likewise, we see Stewart as a more irritable, slightly lucid Xavier compared to past films, now slowly his intellect to illness and age. It's a tragic but touching showing. Young Dafne Keen as X-23/Laura is a fantastic young actress and capable action star who manages to do a lot with relatively little. She has few lines and even less of an arc, but she controls the screen every time she's on.
Manigold backs this up with incredibly restrained direction and a bleak cinematography style that hammers in the surprisingly defeatist tone of the film, and a good amount of blood in the fights that feels realistic and warranted is just icing on the cake. Marco Beltrami's score, likewise, is equally pulled back on big heroic themes and action beats, and instead functions more as mood music to enhance, rather than dictate, the emotional content of scenes.
This is more firmly a superhero drama with action elements than a full blown action blockbuster, containing probably the smallest amount of action since Ang Lee's 'Hulk' (2003). Those looking for a fun romp with Wolverine are better off with the extended edition of 2013's 'The Wolverine', as this is very much a tale of hopelessness and personal loss. Even the fights are less, satisfying gore baths with Wolverine's claws, and more, unpleasant battles for survival against bigger and bigger odds.
Really, 'Logan' is more like a revisionist Western than a comic book adventure: a bleak story about past glories, finding purpose and the onset of decline, with a heavy focus on character dynamics and relationships. The bonds between Wolverine, Xavier and Laura are the beating heart of the movie, and it can be harrowing to watch at times, but that's very much by design. It exists to be the antithesis of your stereotypical, high adventure comic book yarn, and against the optimism of the other X-Men films.
It's a unique and refreshing superhero film that provides a great sendoff to one of its most iconic performers. It's morbid, but has a powerful emotional core with well rounded characters and a unified vision.
It's the 1970s, and as America reels from defeat in Vietnam, the Monarch organisation gets backing to investigate a mysterious island in the South Pacific that has brought down planes and ships. Lead by a disgruntled Colonel, bitter about the outcome of the war, and a former British Special Service tracker, the group quickly find the island is teeming with monsters, including the godlike Kong.
Indie darling Jordan Vogt-Roberts (King of Summer) creates an incredibly tight and direct film that feels like the antithesis of Gareth Edwards' 'Godzilla'. Where the former favoured suspense, tension and a very limited use of the title character in the 'Jaws' tradition, Roberts goes full-fanboy as he dishes out the monster battles thick and fast. King Kong is seen fairly early on and we quickly cycle through the expected conflicts: the military, giant animals like octopi and arachnids and even demonic prehistoric mutations, the Skullcrawlers. We move briskly from setpiece to setpiece, with measured editing and plenty of wide shots to fully appreciate and get immersed in the different battles.
However, Roberts is not afraid to get inventive, having the camera right inside crashing helicopters or on King Kong, allowing you to really feel like you're there in the heat of action. Couple that with an incredible sound design that makes every hit feel big and powerful, and you get your money's worth for blockbuster action.
Naturally, this mentality comes at a price: the plot is very streamlined, as is the backstory to Kong and most of the rather stock cast. There are some nice thematic elements with Vietnam and the destructive mindset of war, but it feels mostly like a glorified excuse to justify the action. Were it not for the quality cast, all of whom do as well as expected, 'Kong: Skull Island' would probably feel a lot less satisfying and tedious.
Indeed, the strongly 70s-influenced of the aesthetic, with very strong ties to 'Apocalypse Now', feel more circumstantial and surface-level than many would hope, and a lot of the man vs nature/'Beauty and the Beast' qualities of the past 'King Kong' films feels far removed from this one. In fact, there's a strong 'Superman Returns' to 'Man of Steel' parallel between this and Peter Jackson's retelling from 2005: one favoured world building, insane amounts of detail and a slow pace, while the other is more interested in crowd-pleasing battles and vistas.
The best way to describe 'Kong: Skull Island' is that this is the perfect 10-year old's movie. This is destined to be the talk of playgrounds and lunch breaks everywhere, kids debating if they liked this or that fight more. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if this leads to kids making their own reenactments of fights on their phones and thus helping to create a new generation of filmmakers, much like past Kongs have. It's good old-fashioned childhood wish fulfilment, and there's nothing wrong with that.
Indie darling Jordan Vogt-Roberts (King of Summer) creates an incredibly tight and direct film that feels like the antithesis of Gareth Edwards' 'Godzilla'. Where the former favoured suspense, tension and a very limited use of the title character in the 'Jaws' tradition, Roberts goes full-fanboy as he dishes out the monster battles thick and fast. King Kong is seen fairly early on and we quickly cycle through the expected conflicts: the military, giant animals like octopi and arachnids and even demonic prehistoric mutations, the Skullcrawlers. We move briskly from setpiece to setpiece, with measured editing and plenty of wide shots to fully appreciate and get immersed in the different battles.
However, Roberts is not afraid to get inventive, having the camera right inside crashing helicopters or on King Kong, allowing you to really feel like you're there in the heat of action. Couple that with an incredible sound design that makes every hit feel big and powerful, and you get your money's worth for blockbuster action.
Naturally, this mentality comes at a price: the plot is very streamlined, as is the backstory to Kong and most of the rather stock cast. There are some nice thematic elements with Vietnam and the destructive mindset of war, but it feels mostly like a glorified excuse to justify the action. Were it not for the quality cast, all of whom do as well as expected, 'Kong: Skull Island' would probably feel a lot less satisfying and tedious.
Indeed, the strongly 70s-influenced of the aesthetic, with very strong ties to 'Apocalypse Now', feel more circumstantial and surface-level than many would hope, and a lot of the man vs nature/'Beauty and the Beast' qualities of the past 'King Kong' films feels far removed from this one. In fact, there's a strong 'Superman Returns' to 'Man of Steel' parallel between this and Peter Jackson's retelling from 2005: one favoured world building, insane amounts of detail and a slow pace, while the other is more interested in crowd-pleasing battles and vistas.
The best way to describe 'Kong: Skull Island' is that this is the perfect 10-year old's movie. This is destined to be the talk of playgrounds and lunch breaks everywhere, kids debating if they liked this or that fight more. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if this leads to kids making their own reenactments of fights on their phones and thus helping to create a new generation of filmmakers, much like past Kongs have. It's good old-fashioned childhood wish fulfilment, and there's nothing wrong with that.
