The Hunger Games: Mockingjay REVIEW

Erik Luchsinger

                                                                        http://collider.com

Following in the footsteps of the ticket-sales boosting geniuses that did the Harry Potter movies, the last book of The Hunger Games trilogy has been split into two movies. Despite the fact that it kind of disqualifies it from being a trilogy now that there will be four movies in total, it's a very smart movie business wise. Story wise, it may not be, though.

 Mockingjay, Part 1 was a vastly different movie than the last two. This isn't necessarily a good thing or a bad thing, but if you're walking into it to get more of the same, you'll be disappointing. The biggest difference is that there is no hunger games at all. No tributes, no teens killing each other on tv, no crazy monkeys or hallucinogenic wasps. Instead, Mockingjay, Part 1 is more of a political thriller that seemed to me like a Bourne movie made for the YA audience. There is political posturing, intrigue, and lots of dull gray scenery.

                                     Unfortunately, we don't get to see Katniss murder anyone with a pen...
                                                                         http://bleistift.memm.de

SPOILERSOMG!SPOILERSOMG!SPOILERSOMG!SPOILERSOMG!SPOILERSOMG!SPOILERSOMG!

It was also missing a lot of the emotion of the past two. I remembered feeling nervous and disenfranchised watching the Reaping scenes in the first movie, and completely betrayed when President Snow decided to make the Quarterquell a victors-only event. Mockingjay just left me wondering what the food in that weird cafeteria tasted like. Sure, we get to see a pit of charred bodies where District 12 used to be, but it falls flat. Anyone who has seen a movie in the past 20 years has seen gore beyond belief, and that failed to elicit any kind of strong emotion. All of the people we care about in the story are safe, which takes away from the emotionally tense moments in the first two movies. Except Peeta, that is. But I'll get to him in a minute.

                                              Doesn't even phase you does it, seasoned movie goer?
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The movie does have it's exciting parts. Perhaps the most engaging part of the movie is the rescue mission part, where a team of District 13 operatives are able to infiltrate the Capitol after the power has been knocked out by a dam explosion. We are treated to an incredibly tense rotation of scenes: Finnick revealing disgusting truths about President Snow in a pit of rubble, Beetee doing some hardcore hacking to keep the Capitol unaware of their intrusion, Gale, et al attempting to rescue Peeta and others, and the tensest Skype session in history between Katniss and Snow. The whole ordeal really grabs your attention.

Peeta is a real piece of work in Mockingjay, Part 1. Throughout the movie we see him used as the Capitol's spokesman, urging the common folk not to revolt at every turn. We see him get more and more haggard as the two sides bash each other with propaganda (and occasionally missiles). While it generates the same "I'm very emotional right now" face from Katniss every time he comes on screen, it is interesting to watch his character degrade more and more. When he and Katniss are finally reunited we are treated to some intense action as Peeta tries to kill Katniss, having been brainwashed by the Capitol into hating her. If you caught those leaked pics of J Law and are into BDSM you'll especially enjoy this part of the movie.

                                   This isn't a porn site, so here's a drawing of what happened, you sick fuck.
                                                                     http://fc09.deviantart.net

All in all Mockingjay, Part 1 was an enjoyable movie, even if it's an abrupt change of pace from its predecessors and can be a little boring at times. It feels more grown up than the first two films and it definitely left me wondering what the second part will be like. I enjoyed it and would recommend it to longtime fans of the series as well as laypersons alike. 8/10 actresses wayyyyy hotter than Megan Fox, go see it if you haven't already!

Interstellar REVIEW

We can stop waiting now!

Catwoman and Alfred team up with Matthew McConaughey to--you know what? Christopher Nolan and his screenwriter partner/brother Jonathan Nolan very rarely disappoint their audiences. Remember Memento? The Dark Knight Rises? Inception? Yeah, bitch. That was them. Just go see the fucking movie.

5/5

REVIEW: Nightcrawler

There are some movies, where the main character is thrown against the wall, and the audience roots for him to succeed. Nightcrawler is not one of those films. In fact, the only reason you would want to root for the main character is to see how depraved he can truly be.

The main character in Nightcrawler is Louis Bloom (Jake Gyllenhaal). He is thrown against the wall and thrusted into a new depraved territory. He is a very low level thief where the film opens up with him stealing wire fences so that he can sell for money. Whilst selling materials he makes an impromptu interview with the seller to work for him. Every tip that any one has ever given any one about an interview he takes to heart and creates a crazed caricature of what the perfect interviewee is supposed to be. 

After the failed interview, on the freeway he sees a car accident and like a moth to a fire, exits his car to watch the carnage. While there he meets a nightcrawler. Someone who video tapes crimes and crashed during the night while the tv stations union workers sleep at night.  He sees them in action and decides that this is a career he could possibly excel in. He steals a bike, sells it, and uses the money to buy a camcorder and police scanner.

On his first night listening to the scanner, he finds a car jacking gone wrong and is able to get pretty good footage. He takes it to a news station where Nina (Rene Russo) buys it from him, and tells him he he has good eye for this sort of carnage.

As the film progresses, so does Lou's business. He tapes more dangerous crimes, and he does whatever he can to make sure he can get amazing footage. Lou soon evolves into a monster that only wants to be bigger and better than when he first started out.

Nightcrawler is one of those films that is a commentary not only on the promotion of violence, but on how the media wants and needs it so it can prosper. Lou also shows what happens when people try their best to such an extent that it becomes vilification. 

Watch Nightcrawler. It has some of the best performances from Jake Gyllenhall and Rene Russo in their careers. One of the best third acts of a film that I have ever seen in quite a long time. I give Nightcrawler 5 Extremely Awkward Mexican Restaurant Scenes out of 5.

The Book of Life REVIEW

On the Day of the Dead, a group of children visit a museum to learn more about the holiday. Their tour guide takes them underground to teach them about the holiday. She tells them that there are two gods: La Muerte and Xibalba. La Muerte is the ruler of the Land of the Remembered and Xibalba is the ruler of the Land of the Forgottern. She then tells them a story from the Book of Life. In this story, which is enacted with wooden dolls, there are three best friends which are completely inseparable: Manolo, Joaquin, and Maria. The three of them live and play together in the town of San Angel. Manolo comes from a family of matadors, but his true passion is music. Joaquin comes from a family of soldiers. Both boys are in love with Maria. On the Day of the Dead, La Muerte, disguised as an old woman, asks Manolo for some bread. He gladly gives it up, saying it's what his mother would want. In exchange, she gives Manolo's family a blessing. Later, Xibalba, disguised as a strange man, asks the same of Joaquin. He refuses until Xibalba offers him the Pin of Everlasting Life. Joaquin gladly accepts. Shortly after, Xibalba bets La Muerte that Maria will marry Joaquin. The winner will become ruler of the Land of the Remembered. However, the next day Maria sets a bunch of pigs loose in the town in an attempt to save their lives from the butcher. Because of this, she is sent to boarding school in Spain.

By the time Maria returns to San Angel, Manolo is a skilled bullfighter and Joaquin, with the help of the Pin of Everlasting Life, is the town hero. Both men are still madly in love with her. Manolo fights a bull and when it comes time to finish the bull, he refuses. Maria admires his compassion. Joaquin throws a party and proposes to Maria. Maria's father urges her to marry Joaquin so he can take care of her. She doesn't give Joaquin an answer. That night, Manolo serenades Maria underneath her balcony. Later, Manolo and Maria meet together but Xibalba's rattlesnake shows up and bites Maria. She dies immediately. Wanting to be with his love, Manolo allows the rattlesnake to bite him twice. When he arrives in the Land of the Remembered, Maria is nowhere to be found. In a Shakespearean turn of events, Maria had merely been in a deep sleep. One kiss from Joaquin, and the Pin of Everlasting Life, wakes her up instantly. But Manolo is still stuck in the Land of the Remembered. This leads him on a quest through the afterlife where he must face his biggest fears in order to be reunited with his love.

The Book of Life is director Jorge R. Gutierrez's first feature length film. It was produced by Guillermo del Toro (Pan's Labrinth, Pacific Rim) and features the voices of Diego Luna as Manolo, Channing Tatum as Joquin, and Zoe Saldana as Maria. It also features Ron Perlman, Christina Applegate, Danny Trejo, Ice Cube, Cheech Marin, and Gabriel Iglesias. The music was fantastic. It featured mariachi versions of popular songs such as "I Will Wait," "Just a Friend," and "I Can't Help Falling in Love." The art design and animation were absolutely stunning. An Academy Award nomination for Best Production Design wouldn't be surprising in the least bit.

3/5 Visually outstanding and very fun.

Halloween Horror Countdown: Antichrist

With every horror fan, there is that quest of finding the best horror film ever. And not the best in the pantheon of horror, but that certain film that speaks to them on a certain level. For me that horror film is Antichrist. It is on another level of horror that not many horror film can attain and a level that not many horrors fans get the pleasure of even seeing.

Antichrist stars Williem Dafoe and Charlette Gainsbourg as He and She. The film starts off with a gorgeous prologue that moves in decadent dazzling dreamlike speed as She and He have sex.Their faces become a strange and exciting mix between pain and pleasure. While they are having sex there are shots cutting in between of their child in his crib. The knock things off of tables; the child escapes from his crib. They are in ecstasy; the the window from the second floor opens. They are in their own world; their child falls out of the window and exits the world.



After this prologue ends, the film begins, with the first of three stages: Grief. She and Him escape from their lives after the death of their child. The go to a cabin in the woods called Eden.  Here they begin the stage of grief. She blames herself and He tries to use his psychobabble to help her heal. There are many scenes in this section of the film where nature is taking over their lives as if it is an antibody trying to fix a wrong they committed. The same act that created their son becomes the same act that took his life. She blames herself and He lets her. She becomes destructive, and mentally destroys herself. AT the very end of this chapter the a deer locks eye contact with him. As the deer walks away, a dead baby fawn is halfway hanging out of its mother's womb.



The second and next chapter is: Pain. Nature becomes a much stronger force for them. Their cabin being pelted with acorns, engorged ticks attack His hand as he sleeps, and at the end of this sinister chapter a, He finds a fox disemboweling itself and it utters two words to him: Chaos Reigns.

The last and final chapter is: Despair. This couple were at psychological tipping points and now with the death of their child they have been completely flipped and She believes they need to be punished for their child's death. She has sex with him and then mutilates him. She knocks him unconscious and in his unconscious state she makes a hole in his leg. In this hole she put a metal rod attached to a grindstone that can only be taken off with a large wrench, which she hides. He wakes up to discover his cannot stand up with the large grindstone embedded in his leg. He escapes and she looks for him. He finds a fox hole, where a crow has been buried alive. She hears the crow, and he tries to kill the crow with a rock, but it won't die. She tries to get him out of the fox hole but cannot reach him.



There is another chapter that does not deal with the three stages of their mourning. In this chapter She mutilates herself in a scene that will make you not look at scissors the same way.

The main reason this film is on a different level from other horror films is the fact that it is truly horrifying. It does not try to use cheap scares to appease the audience nor does it try to kill off as many people for the sake of death. This film deals with the aftermath of death; mourning. It presents itself in away that is shocking yet understandable of why they are hurting each other this way. There is nothing that really scares them anymore because the one scary thing to them, losing their child, already happened and they blame themselves for it.

Antichrist does have religious allusions, but the word here is being used in a different manner. An Antichrist would mean there would have to be a Christ like figure, which there is not.  This is psychological horror at its best and it will also appease the torture porn junkies out there, but this film is not for everyone. If you want a horror film that deviates from the status quo, this is the perfect film for you. I give Antichrist 5 falling children out of 5.

Halloween Horror Countdown: Eraserhead

Eraserhead Review
By Erik Luchsinger

                                                                        en.wikipedia.org


Movies mean a lot of different things to a lot of people. To some they are entertainment, to others they are a hobby, and to still others, movies are art. David Lynch's Eraserhead takes a genuinely weird-as-fuck approach to everyone's favorite moving visual medium (pornography excluded, of course) to create a monster of a film that is barely recognizable as a "movie" in the context of movies today.

Eraserhead is about a man living in an industrial wasteland of a town on what seems to be some kind of abandoned moon, floating in space. He and his lover/epileptic lady friend have something of a shotgun wedding at the hands of aforementioned lady friend's parents and end up with a deformed "baby" that they try halfheartedly to raise. After long bouts of creepy music, intense hallucinations and dream sequences the movie goes out with a disgusting bang as the baby grows and becomes even more deformed. Cue some odd visuals involving a pencil factory and (thankfully) the movie is over.

                                                                           'Nuff Said
                                                                         www.reddit.com

From my overview of the plot it may sound like I dislike this movie, but that's not quite right. It's not easy to describe my feelings towards Eraserhead because it's not a normal movie. Regular critiques like "the acting was good" and "I enjoyed the story" don't mean anything in the context of Eraserhead. I wouldn't go so far as to call it a "good" movie. It isn't enjoyable to watch unless you enjoy feeling uncomfortable, awkward, and like you're covered in some kind of industrial-grade machine grease and badly need to take a shower. There is very little dialogue and most of it doesn't really mean anything because there's no story. You don't feel attached to any of the characters. For these reasons, the movie can even be boring at times if you're not in the right mood for a proper mindfuck.

All that being said, Eraserhead accomplishes something few horror movies do, which is to make the viewer genuinely feel things. Watching this movie will scare you, it will make you feel dirty, nervous, anxious, nauseous, and probably a little like you're losing your mind. The music and soundscape is straight out of a nightmare, as is the nonsensical and disorienting way that the plot progresses. The visual texture is gritty. The awkward nature of the characters adds to the whole inhuman feeling of Eraserhead. You will walk away from this movie feeling like you just awoke from a terrible dream, the kind that makes you question who you are and what you're doing with your life.

Before I wrap this up, I want to address one of the ever-present questions regarding weird cult movies: should I watch it stoned/drunk/on acid/after licking too many toads? The answer in this case is HELL FUCKING NO. This isn't The Big Lebowski we're talking about here, this is some weird fucking shit. Eraserhead isn't funny or even remotely amusing. Getting high and watching it will more likely than not result in you standing in front of your bathroom mirror trying to pull all your hair out. Why? Because you will have actually gone insane. Just watch it sober and try to think happy thoughts. It wont totally mitigate the terror that Eraserhead will unleash upon you, but it might help a little. This warning goes doubly for psychedelics.

                                              Shrooms and David Lynch Movies: not a good combo
                                                                        en.wikipedia.org

Eraserhead is a trip of a movie. It's not like any other movie I've ever seen. No amount of jump scares and CGI will terrify you in the way that Eraserhead will. Sure, it's not a Halloween classic, at least in most circles, but it is genuinely scary. If you're looking to get spooked out this Halloween, I'd highly suggest adding Eraserhead to your gauntlet of terror. This is a 5/5 if you're in the market for a horror experience, but a 1.5/5 if you're looking for a movie that makes any kind of sense.

Whiplash REVIEW

With every niche genre of film, there is a film within that genre that destroys all notions and cliches within that genre. Whiplash is one of those film. Within every mentor/student film, there is the same basic storyline. Mentor sees something in student, student pushes himself because of mentor, something happen that brings student down, and mentor and student go against all odds and the students proves to himself, mentor, and everyone else that he is worth something. Whiplash doesn't do any of these things. It doesn't even try to do these things.

Whiplash tells the story of Andrew Neyman (Miles Teller), a jazz drummer at a Juilliard-esque type music school. While practicing one day, Terence Fletcher (JK Simmons), one of the schools toughest teachers, listens to him and then leaves out of boredom. Andrew realizes that it was such a loss for Fletcher to lose interest in him, but he proves himself worthy later on to be in Fletcher's Studio Jazz Band.

Once there, Fletcher degrades, curses, and diminishes players who are not worthy to be in his band. He seems to imprint on Andrew pushing him and throwing chairs when he fails. When another player makes a mistake and Andrew has to take his place during a competition, Andrew starts to attain a certain confidence that shows in his regular life. With that confidence he asks a girl out that he frequently sees at a movie theatre. They start a budding relationship that makes Andrew not a solitary person like he always is.


When Fletcher gets another alternate that starts to go up against Andrew, he starts to lose his cool and lashes out at Fletcher, When a song that they are supposed to play at the next competition is supposed to be played at 300BPM, Fletcher makes all the drummers play until 2 in the morning when their hands and drums are covered in blood until Andrew is the one that prevails.

When the day of the competition comes and he is late, Andrew loses his part and lashes out at Fletcher. He gets expelled for attacking Fletcher.  When Andrew's father finds out, he talks to a lawyer because a student recently committed suicide who was also under Fletcher's wing. Fletcher then loses his job and Andrew becomes aimless after being expelled from school.

Andrew walks around town one night near a jazz bar, and sees Fletcher playing. The two talk and everything seems amicable. Fletcher tells Andrew that he was fired from school, but doesn't know who did. Fletcher asks Andrew to be the drummer in his new jazz ensemble that is playing at a jazz festival.

I won't ruin the ending or the climax of this film, but it is explosive and there are multiple reversals that when the ending does happen you just want more of it. Teller and Simmons both give performances that are career defining for both. Miles Teller has been a scene stealer with every film he has done in his short film career, but for J.K. Simmons this is a role that people will remember him for.

What makes this film different is the fact that this teacher student dynamic does not follow the same formula. It is seeped with destructive egos and an ebb and flow of a power struggle to be the best and create the best. Each jazz session feels like a war, and there is a reason this film has been nicknamed "Full Metal Julliard". Simmons's character is also such a delightful monster. He keeps changing from tyrannical teacher to showing signs of humanity that makes people relate and understand what he does, and how he wants to create the next great jazz musician. This film is a maelstrom of music. Where jazz songs feel like a battlefield of notes. The scripts writes itself into a corner, that when it finds a way out it creates such a  firestorm of a jazz sequence that is cinema at its best. I give Whiplash 5 bloody drum sticks out of 5.