Written by: Kevin Berge
Sometimes the weird movies are the best movies, and, at this time when no one wants to release major films, some filmmakers get to stand out through sheer audacity. They can make weird and wacky movies that get people interested.
Strangeness can come in various forms. It can be taking a conventional action movie and turned it on its head. It can be a documentary that colors old well known archival footage to modernize a look at the past. It can be a simple biographical drama about a famous duo no one knew they needed to learn more about.
It can also be a comedic story about an engaged couple looking for a threesome because only in February can you release a movie like that.
The four films I will be focusing on this time around are the Liam Neeson-led clever action flick Cold Pursuit, the inspired documentary They Shall Not Grow Old, the biographical drama Stan and Ollie, and the bizarre comedy The Unicorn.
Strangeness can come in various forms. It can be taking a conventional action movie and turned it on its head. It can be a documentary that colors old well known archival footage to modernize a look at the past. It can be a simple biographical drama about a famous duo no one knew they needed to learn more about.
It can also be a comedic story about an engaged couple looking for a threesome because only in February can you release a movie like that.
The four films I will be focusing on this time around are the Liam Neeson-led clever action flick Cold Pursuit, the inspired documentary They Shall Not Grow Old, the biographical drama Stan and Ollie, and the bizarre comedy The Unicorn.
He doesn't know who you are or what you want, but he has a particular set of skills, the skills to drive a snow plow real nice, which should scare anyone that gets in his way. (Image Courtesy of: forbes.com)
Cold Pursuit
Taken started a whole subgenre of action movies that we never really needed entirely led by Liam Neeson at the head. Cold Pursuit on the surface looked like just another old-man-kills-guys-for-the-sake-of-his-family movie, but it is far more clever than that.
This is really a black comedy disguised as an action flick, laughing at its own action and violence with a wicked unwieldiness. Neeson is playing the same role as usual, but the rest of the film is working on a much different level than normal.
Once the film's greatest gimmick begins to emerge, the humor comes to the forefront with clarity. It never gets laugh-out-loud hilarious, but its subtlety works. It also has some strong messages about family and the treatment of Native American people that give it some meaning.
Despite this, it never really engages with its characters. Nels Coxman barely has any development, and his family are even less than archetypes in this story. The villain Viking played by Tom Bateman feels more fleshed out than any of the protagonists.
I think there is more to Cold Pursuit than is obvious in the first viewing, so I'm giving it some leeway. Its violence showcase and engaging wry humor make for a fascinating pairing that dives at a few points into tangents that feel too bizarre to fully comprehend.
No one makes movies like this with new director Hans Petter Moland making his mark, but I just cannot quite tell if that uniqueness is enough to carry a tale that is lacking a human touch.
This is really a black comedy disguised as an action flick, laughing at its own action and violence with a wicked unwieldiness. Neeson is playing the same role as usual, but the rest of the film is working on a much different level than normal.
Once the film's greatest gimmick begins to emerge, the humor comes to the forefront with clarity. It never gets laugh-out-loud hilarious, but its subtlety works. It also has some strong messages about family and the treatment of Native American people that give it some meaning.
Despite this, it never really engages with its characters. Nels Coxman barely has any development, and his family are even less than archetypes in this story. The villain Viking played by Tom Bateman feels more fleshed out than any of the protagonists.
I think there is more to Cold Pursuit than is obvious in the first viewing, so I'm giving it some leeway. Its violence showcase and engaging wry humor make for a fascinating pairing that dives at a few points into tangents that feel too bizarre to fully comprehend.
No one makes movies like this with new director Hans Petter Moland making his mark, but I just cannot quite tell if that uniqueness is enough to carry a tale that is lacking a human touch.
Grade: B-
Seeing all these guys with terrible teeth, ruined by the war, was more horrific than any corpse. (Image Courtesy of: youtube.com)
They Shall Not Grow Old
I'll fully admit that documentaries have never been my type of film-going experience. If I want to learn about a particular subject more directly, I focus on reading about it. Docs often feel limited in scope, and they are hardly entertaining more often than not.
However, it was hard not to be fascinated by what was accomplished with the creation of They Shall Not Grow Old. This use of modern technology to frame familiar material (the Imperial War Museum's archival footage) on World War I is remarkable to watch.
With colorized and restored footage with impressive sound design on top of it all, this experience feels alive, driven entirely by the voices of those who lived it. It is emotionally evocative and impactful in a way that few films are regardless of format.
That said, it is still not a movie made for me. I found myself drifting off at times particularly when the footage used was not completely modernized. In the height of the war scenes, the movie shined, but it lagged when it tried to set up those moments.
This comes down much to personal preference. I was never going to be completely satisfied with this documentary, but it still impressed me and left an impact. For fans of the format, this is certainly a must watch.
Peter Jackson and his team put passionate work into this project that shows. It is a remarkable achievement and portrayed with genuine care.
However, it was hard not to be fascinated by what was accomplished with the creation of They Shall Not Grow Old. This use of modern technology to frame familiar material (the Imperial War Museum's archival footage) on World War I is remarkable to watch.
With colorized and restored footage with impressive sound design on top of it all, this experience feels alive, driven entirely by the voices of those who lived it. It is emotionally evocative and impactful in a way that few films are regardless of format.
That said, it is still not a movie made for me. I found myself drifting off at times particularly when the footage used was not completely modernized. In the height of the war scenes, the movie shined, but it lagged when it tried to set up those moments.
This comes down much to personal preference. I was never going to be completely satisfied with this documentary, but it still impressed me and left an impact. For fans of the format, this is certainly a must watch.
Peter Jackson and his team put passionate work into this project that shows. It is a remarkable achievement and portrayed with genuine care.
Grade: B
Does it make me young and naive to say I didn't even know who Laurel and Hardy were until this film? (Image Courtesy of: sonyclassics.com)
Stan and Ollie
I went into Stan and Ollie with absolutely no knowledge of the pair being explored, and it really didn't matter. Laurel and Hardy could be entirely fictional, and this would still be a completely engrossing experience led by two fantastic actors in the best form of their career.
Steve Coogan and John C. Reilly are comedy actors, who have an impressive dramatic range that has rarely been explored. Here they completely disappear into these characters, committing to the odd dynamic of these two often estranged friends.
This is a story about two men at the end of their careers at odds due to their past actions. They can never quite decide how much they mean to each other or how much their act means to them, but they keep working together and put on better performances with each outing.
There is not a great force at work trying to keep them down. Age and their egos are the main antagonists in this story. This makes the conflicts subtle and sometimes sudden. So much is held under the surface for so long that, by the time it comes to the surface, it is expected yet still dreaded.
Despite being labeled as a comedy-drama, I don't see much of any comedy in this story. The acts have their own comedy, but these are not a part of the story at the center. This is a true drama where both men's shortcomings and frustrations are on full display.
The work of Coogan and Reilly as well as the tight screenplay made this an engrossing ride that never had to go too far to be affecting. This was one of the best movies to come out in 2018 and should not be forgotten down the line.
Steve Coogan and John C. Reilly are comedy actors, who have an impressive dramatic range that has rarely been explored. Here they completely disappear into these characters, committing to the odd dynamic of these two often estranged friends.
This is a story about two men at the end of their careers at odds due to their past actions. They can never quite decide how much they mean to each other or how much their act means to them, but they keep working together and put on better performances with each outing.
There is not a great force at work trying to keep them down. Age and their egos are the main antagonists in this story. This makes the conflicts subtle and sometimes sudden. So much is held under the surface for so long that, by the time it comes to the surface, it is expected yet still dreaded.
Despite being labeled as a comedy-drama, I don't see much of any comedy in this story. The acts have their own comedy, but these are not a part of the story at the center. This is a true drama where both men's shortcomings and frustrations are on full display.
The work of Coogan and Reilly as well as the tight screenplay made this an engrossing ride that never had to go too far to be affecting. This was one of the best movies to come out in 2018 and should not be forgotten down the line.
Grade: A-
It was real hard to explain to people that I was going to the quirky comedy about threesomes that's totally not just a weird sex thing. (Image Courtesy of: ew.com)
The Unicorn
I had no idea what to think of The Unicorn going in, but its set up is far more insane than its actual plot. This is a story of a couple coming to terms with their relationship and better understanding who they are over the course of a fine realization comedy.
There are certainly some clever jokes along the way along with ones that pull out heavy cringe. Nicholas Rutherford and Lauren Lapkus are a fine but unremarkable pair, and their journey is filled with highs and lows that make for a far better sweet drama than sexy comedy.
In that way, it is a film that is far more my speed than I expected. It has a nice message about understanding and communication. It just fails largely in what it seems to have set out to do. It's not all that funny and presents the sexual side of its story with barely a thought.
For that reason, I don't have all that much to say about it. It was fine, but I will hardly remember this film in a few months. That's a shame because it had a chance to be an underground hit, but few are missing out by not even knowing it exists.
At its core, this feels like a skit that was stretched out into a full length movie and sacrifices the joke for the sake of a fine but forgettable story.
There are certainly some clever jokes along the way along with ones that pull out heavy cringe. Nicholas Rutherford and Lauren Lapkus are a fine but unremarkable pair, and their journey is filled with highs and lows that make for a far better sweet drama than sexy comedy.
In that way, it is a film that is far more my speed than I expected. It has a nice message about understanding and communication. It just fails largely in what it seems to have set out to do. It's not all that funny and presents the sexual side of its story with barely a thought.
For that reason, I don't have all that much to say about it. It was fine, but I will hardly remember this film in a few months. That's a shame because it had a chance to be an underground hit, but few are missing out by not even knowing it exists.
At its core, this feels like a skit that was stretched out into a full length movie and sacrifices the joke for the sake of a fine but forgettable story.