Written by: Kevin Berge
I'm still waiting for 2019's film quality to blow me away. A lot of the early 2019 summer offerings have been forgettable, and my list of top movies feels fairly barren. The year is just not quite delivering on the promise of its concepts yet.
That is true of many recently released films. Hollywood is trying to shift the familiar into a new form, and nothing is quite standing out. You have to start with a recognizable name or concept then make it fresh.
Three movies that tried this with varying results were the movies I'll be reviewing this week: the talk show comedy Late Night, the superhero spoof horror Brightburn, and the Beatles-influenced romantic musical Yesterday.
That is true of many recently released films. Hollywood is trying to shift the familiar into a new form, and nothing is quite standing out. You have to start with a recognizable name or concept then make it fresh.
Three movies that tried this with varying results were the movies I'll be reviewing this week: the talk show comedy Late Night, the superhero spoof horror Brightburn, and the Beatles-influenced romantic musical Yesterday.
It's all very believable except for there being a female talk show host because it only makes sense for every talk show host to be a boring old white man. It's called standard TV diversity. (Image Courtesy of: variety.com)
Late Night
Comedies are a dime a dozen in Hollywood, so it is hard to distinguish which will land. What often seems to differentiate them is genuine empathy. Comedies with no heart fall wildly short, but those that care to present more than laughs make an impact.
Late Night takes a lot of familiar tropes, wraps them together in a neat bow, and lands on a solid film. It helps that Emma Thompson (Sense and Sensibility) and Mindy Kaling (The Office) work well off each other and in their respective roles.
Moreover, it helps that the concept of focusing on a talk show in peril is mostly untouched. The movie may be treading familiar ground, but it is doing so in territory that is mostly fresh with comedians that have experience with the exact setting they are focusing upon.
The ups and downs are present throughout the run time of this film. It sparks with drama, genuine emotion, and solid laughs. In fact, it often is not as funny as it should, but it makes up for it by being genuinely engaging. It feels more real than one would expect.
All this said, the lack of strong resounding humor will likely make this a forgettable experience down the line. This isn't a movie driven by memorable quotes. It won't be adding more recognizable GIFs to social media.
While I appreciate a comedy like this, I think most common comedy fans will skip it. It's a good movie but only a fine comedy, so it will mostly be forgotten in the long run.
Late Night takes a lot of familiar tropes, wraps them together in a neat bow, and lands on a solid film. It helps that Emma Thompson (Sense and Sensibility) and Mindy Kaling (The Office) work well off each other and in their respective roles.
Moreover, it helps that the concept of focusing on a talk show in peril is mostly untouched. The movie may be treading familiar ground, but it is doing so in territory that is mostly fresh with comedians that have experience with the exact setting they are focusing upon.
The ups and downs are present throughout the run time of this film. It sparks with drama, genuine emotion, and solid laughs. In fact, it often is not as funny as it should, but it makes up for it by being genuinely engaging. It feels more real than one would expect.
All this said, the lack of strong resounding humor will likely make this a forgettable experience down the line. This isn't a movie driven by memorable quotes. It won't be adding more recognizable GIFs to social media.
While I appreciate a comedy like this, I think most common comedy fans will skip it. It's a good movie but only a fine comedy, so it will mostly be forgotten in the long run.
Grade: B
I wouldn't have assumed Superman becoming Scarecrow if he went bad. (Image Courtesy of: slashfilm.com)
Brightburn
Brightburn is a simple concept. It's an easy elevator pitch: the story of Superman from Lex Luther's perspective. Sure, it doesn't admit this is evil Superman as a kid, but it's far too obvious not to be.
This is a gory and violent horror film that goes about halfway to being interesting but falls wildly short. No characters in this story really matter. Elizabeth Banks (The Hunger Games) brings some humanity to her role as the mother of a monster, but that relationship entirely comes off one sided.
The rest of the relationships seem to be presupposed. The film expects you to accept that these people care about this kid, who has suddenly turned evil. There's no reason to. He basically starts out the film already off, and he gets worse by the minute.
What is worse is that nothing about him feels genuine. He's pulled along by the plot. His own desires are driven by a ham-fisted plot. There's not really anything here to latch onto. When people start dying, it works best to just enjoy it in a black comedy sort of manner.
I don't really know what I was expecting going in. This film doesn't rely on bad horror tropes much, which is nice, but it's also just not all that scary in the ways it does present its scares. There's not a moment in this film that feels genuinely affecting.
The bare bones budget is used well. The action is somewhat entertaining. The overall impact is completely negligible. This is a film without a drive built with characters that are forgettable at best.
This is a gory and violent horror film that goes about halfway to being interesting but falls wildly short. No characters in this story really matter. Elizabeth Banks (The Hunger Games) brings some humanity to her role as the mother of a monster, but that relationship entirely comes off one sided.
The rest of the relationships seem to be presupposed. The film expects you to accept that these people care about this kid, who has suddenly turned evil. There's no reason to. He basically starts out the film already off, and he gets worse by the minute.
What is worse is that nothing about him feels genuine. He's pulled along by the plot. His own desires are driven by a ham-fisted plot. There's not really anything here to latch onto. When people start dying, it works best to just enjoy it in a black comedy sort of manner.
I don't really know what I was expecting going in. This film doesn't rely on bad horror tropes much, which is nice, but it's also just not all that scary in the ways it does present its scares. There's not a moment in this film that feels genuinely affecting.
The bare bones budget is used well. The action is somewhat entertaining. The overall impact is completely negligible. This is a film without a drive built with characters that are forgettable at best.
Grade: D
This is entirely wrong. Yesterday wasn't on Abbey Road. If you're going to pander to The Beatles fanatics, at least commit properly. (Image Courtesy of: bestclassicbands.com)
Yesterday
I love The Beatles. I was raised on a steady diet of their music, and I regularly return to their work. There's so much love and passion behind the variety of pop the four men created together. They were a sensation for a reason.
I was excited by the idea of Yesterday because it was a Danny Boyle (Trainspotting) film with a fine premise. It was playing off the idea of transporting The Beatles to the modern musical landscape.
However, the movie never really delivers. It plays it so safe that it never feels like the movie really matters. It comes off more as a long term romantic comedy vehicle. There's not much cleverness to how the story progresses or even social commentary behind its plot.
The music of The Beatles is treated as some undeniable attraction that would have easily translated and affected any generation, yet the concept of taking the band out of the world has almost no effects on the world itself.
It's a what if story that thought about the effects for maybe a minute at most. While it is a sweet film with Himesh Patel and Lily James (Cinderella) bringing their all to the lead roles, there's not enough here to merit interest.
It's a forgettable attempt that feels like a first draft rushed onto the screen. Boyle has some fun with framing scenes with some strong cinematography, but the concept he is presenting had room for so much untapped potential. I liked it, but I've already forgotten most of it.
I was excited by the idea of Yesterday because it was a Danny Boyle (Trainspotting) film with a fine premise. It was playing off the idea of transporting The Beatles to the modern musical landscape.
However, the movie never really delivers. It plays it so safe that it never feels like the movie really matters. It comes off more as a long term romantic comedy vehicle. There's not much cleverness to how the story progresses or even social commentary behind its plot.
The music of The Beatles is treated as some undeniable attraction that would have easily translated and affected any generation, yet the concept of taking the band out of the world has almost no effects on the world itself.
It's a what if story that thought about the effects for maybe a minute at most. While it is a sweet film with Himesh Patel and Lily James (Cinderella) bringing their all to the lead roles, there's not enough here to merit interest.
It's a forgettable attempt that feels like a first draft rushed onto the screen. Boyle has some fun with framing scenes with some strong cinematography, but the concept he is presenting had room for so much untapped potential. I liked it, but I've already forgotten most of it.
