Topic Of The Day: Sulu To Be Gay In Star Trek Beyond

I wasn't going to post this immediately after the story broke out because I wanted to give my readers a bit of a breather regarding the whole diversity issue. But I wanted to share my thoughts on the story regardless.

Apparently, the character of Sulu from Star Trek will be revealed as a homosexual in the upcoming Star Trek Beyond as a way to honor George Takei who originated the character back in the 1960's series and is openly gay. But apparently, Takei himself isn't fond of the idea. 

Now as I have mentioned before, representation in Hollywood blockbusters is something I really want to see. As a gay man, I want to see my community represented on the big screen and as actual, well-realized characters rather than side comic relief and whatnot. I am glad that they have a gay character in the film. However, I'm still on the fence about this. 

When George Takei said why he's not fond the idea, he did say he's glad they have a gay character represented. But he felt that they didn't have to make a character already established as straight into a homosexual and they could've created an original gay character. 

In fact, I fear that by making Sulu gay, some fans will start to scream "Agenda!" and that this is all for political reasons. Even if that isn't the reason why this decision is made, look at the backlash for the upcoming Ghostbusters reboot with people screaming "Feminist agenda!" and I don't want to see a similar backlash hit this film.

Also, with Iron Man now being a black woman in the comics, Thor also a woman, Captain America now a black man, and the Hulk a Korean-American, even Marvel fans may wonder the same thing. 

That's why I think comic book writers and even writers of film adaptations of beloved fanboy properties should perhaps write more original characters that allow more representation. We've seen a recent trend of female heroines in Star Wars films as well as characters played by people of color. But those actors are playing new characters in an already established universe. There's speculation as to whether the character of Poe Dameron, played by Oscar Isaac, will be revealed as gay or bisexual. But Poe is an original character so they can go any avenues in which they choose. I suppose they could go in a different avenue for already established character like Luke Skywalker. But that would probably scream "Agenda!" to some fans.

But overall, even if I'm not 100% on board with the decision to make Sulu gay because they could easily write an original gay character for the film, it's not a decision I'm completely upset with. I do give the writers and filmmakers credit for trying to allow more representation.

Be sure to leave your thoughts in the comments section about what you think of this decision. Thanks for reading!

Top 10 Films Of 2016 So Far

Hello, Bloggers. Here is a quick at what I think are the top 10 best films of 2016 so far this year. So far, it's looking like a very decent year for film and here's hoping it can get better. Take a look:

Honorable Mentions:

The Conjuring 2 
Deadpool

Finding Dory 

Midnight Special 

Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising 

10. 10 Cloverfield Lane: These days, when we have mindless overbudgeted blockbusters, I cherish any science fiction film that goes the minimalist route. That is certainly one reason why 10 Cloverfield Lane succeeds along with the terrific performances by the main trio and how it shows that the monsters outside the bunker are not the only ones to fear.

9. Captain America: Civil War: Despite Captain America: Civil War being a grand summer spectacle, it is far from mindless. This is some of the most fun I've had at the movies so far this year yet I couldn't help but feel that its story of heroes being put under surveillance is quite an interesting parallel to our society today in the age of Snowden and drone warfare. I would say that this is Marvel's best, and most mature, film to date.

8. The Witch: The beauty of the film's horror is that it isn't about jump scares or CGI. The Witch relies mostly on an ongoing sense of paranoia as well as an constant feeling of dread thanks to its bleak cinematography, screeching violinic score, and sound mixing. After watching this film, sometimes, I'm a little too afraid to go to the woods.

7. The Nice Guys: There's a lot of talk about us seeing a string of big-budgeters underperforming this summer. But to me, what's more devastating is that many people missed out on The Nice Guys (it grossed $35m domestically against a $50m budget). What you guys missed out on is a balls-out good time packed with action, comedy, and nostalgia. Also, it is going to be hard to find an on-screen duo that works so well together better than Russell Crowe and Ryan Gosling. If there is, I haven't seen it and possibly won't. 

6. Hello, My Name Is Doris: Hello, My Name Is Doris is a gem for several reasons. It shows how love and living it to the fullest can affect people at any age, it makes you laugh while tugging at the heartstrings, and above all, it proves that Sally Field, who carries this film to perfection, has still got it!

5. The Jungle Book: Perhaps the biggest surprise I've seen so far this year, The Jungle Book manages to single-handedly eclipse other live-action adaptations of Disney animated films like Alice In Wonderland and Snow White and the Huntsman. Its blend of live action and CGI storytelling is an absolute marvel (They might as well deliver the Visual Effects Oscar to those responsible) and it also manages to be a film for everyone: It's hilarious, it's scary at times, it touches the heart, and it's got a few musical numbers. After I saw it in theaters, I immediately wanted to go back to the jungle!

4. Eye In The Sky: How refreshing is it to see a war movie that doesn't take any sides? It presents the issue at hand and lets the audience decide for themselves while being a very tense film-watching experience at that. Even though the film depicts mostly people piloting drones and sitting in chairs, I was on the edge of my seat, wondering what's going to happen next.

3. A Bigger Splash: I usually don't mind films that depict people going on in conversation just as long as the director is able to make something innovative out of it. Luca Guadagnino certainly does that in spades. Its editing and cinematography are very intoxicating, the quartet ensemble is on their A-game, and overall, it is just an exhilarating experience packed with sex, rock 'n roll, and mystery.

2. The Lobster: Director Yorgos Lanthimos is someone who specializes in the unorthodox like with this 2010 film Dogtooth. The Lobster, which is set in a world where being single is illegal, was full of such original world building yet by the time it was over, I was reminded of how I'm frantically swiping left or right on Tinder. It got me thinking of how I myself feel the pressure of being single like the characters in the movie. The more I think about it, the more I might appreciate it.

1. Zootopia: Zootopia was quite a leap for Disney. While it does manage to be a fun family film with humor, heart, and mystery, it also overtly captures the cultural zeitgeist of racism and prejudice going on in our country today. When we see scenes like a couple prey animals moving away from a predator when sitting on a train, you're just like "Wow, that's like us." So I would say it's one of Disney's most mature films to date and it is the best film 2016 has to offer so far this year.

Please be sure to share your own top 10 in the comments section. Thanks for reading! 

Review: Mike And Dave Need Wedding Dates (2016)

      It's interesting how there's a scene where two of the main characters reference the film Wedding Crashers because while this wedding comedy can't quite top it, it is still far from terrible.

      Story:
     Mike And Dave Need Wedding Dates follows the story of two brothers named Mike and Dave Stangle (Adam Devine and Zac Efron) who after constantly crashing past family gatherings, are persuaded by their sister to bring dates to her wedding so they can get their acts together. But the dates that they end up with (Anna Kendrick and Aubrey Plaza) turn out to be a little more chaotic than they bargained for.

     Ups:
     While the film has the names Mike and Dave in the title, to me, it is ultimately the ladies that came out the best. Aubrey Plaza was her usual hilarious self as she plays a bad girl poorly pretending to be all "peaches and cream" while Anna Kendrick proves that she has quite a gift for comedy as she pulls off a character that is sweet yet as sour as she pleases. Stephanie Beard, who plays Mike and Dave's sister Jeannie, was also a standout as she plays the role of the bride trying to react to the constant chaos taking place with great hilarity without ever coming off as a caricatural Bridezilla. As for Adam Devine and Zac Efron, though, they're fine. But it's really the ladies who steal the show.

     I will say, though, that this is the best Zac Efron comedy I've seen this year. Slightly better than Neighbors 2 and miles above the piece of cinematic excrement known as Dirty Grandpa. While there were some crude jokes in this film, I didn't find them as tasteless as the jokes in Dirty Grandpa which had jokes involving homophobia and pedophilia. (Seriously, who said it was okay to give that movie the greenlight?) So Mike and Dave never went that far, thankfully.

     There were also a lot of references to other films, like The Shining, Taken, Jurassic Park, and of course Wedding Crashers that I thought were quite funny. The good stuff kind of ends there.

    Downs:
    I will say that while I applaud the film for being quite diverse ince it has people of different demographics being represented. But there was one bisexual character that kind of stuck out like a sore thumb because I felt that she was just there to be the token gay character. If you took her out of the film, it wouldn't have made much alterations to the plot.

    There is even a plot point revealed very early on involving Anna Kendrick's character and how she got stood up at her own wedding which was filmed into a video. After the first time we see the video, we see it a few more times and that was a little unneeded. We already know that she was still reeling from it and we didn't neat to see the video again and again. I also thought the story in general was pretty predictable.

    Consensus:
    Overall, Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates is a familiar comedy in the vein of Wedding Crashers elevated by the performances of its leading ladies. Its story can be problematic but I knew going into this film that it wasn't going to be in the running for awards season. If you're looking for a good Zac Efron comedy, or a good comedy in general, to go see in theaters, you should give this one a look.

Grade: B
   

Oscars 2017: July Predictions

For the first time on my Oscar predictions, I'm going to try and predict almost every category. Every category except the shorts, Documentary and Best Foreign Language Film.

Best Picture:
Arrival
Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk 
The Birth Of A Nation 
Fences*
La La Land 
Loving
Manchester By The Sea 
Moonlight 
Silence 
20th Century Women 

Replaced Lion, Collateral Beauty, and Passengers with Arrival, 20th Century Women, and Loving. I feel that director Denis Villeneuve has really been building up his industry cred with nominations for Prisoners (1 for Cinematography) and Sicario (3 for Cinematography, Score, Sound Mixing). So provided the movie delivers, Arrival could really be his ticket to Oscar. Loving I put back on my predictions and 20th Century Women I'm now predicting since it got picked up by A24 Films.

Fences, I think could pull through and win it the more I think about it. After #OscarsSoWhite, they may feel compulsed to award a film about people of color Best Picture and in case Birth OfA Nation is too dark, Loving is too subtle as the reviews are suggesting, and Moonlight is too "young generation," Fences might seem like a viable option.

Best Director:
Barry Jenkins, Moonlight 
Ang Lee, Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk 
Nate Parker, Birth Of A Nation 
Martin Scorsese, Silence*
Denzel Washington, Fences 

Replaced Garth Davis for Lion with Barry Jenkins for Moonlight. I think he could be this year's Lenny Abrahamson: An unknown that gets in for a little movie that could and I think this year's "little engine" could be Moonlight. 

Best Actor:
Casey Affleck, Manchester By The Sea 
Joel Edgerton, Loving 
David Oyelowo, A United Kingdom 
Nate Parker, Birth Of A Nation 
Denzel Washington, Fences*

Replaced Michael Keaton and Andrew Garfield with David Oyelowo and Casey Affleck. With Keaton out of my predictions, I think Denzel Washington can be the one to win it. David Oyelowo could be someone to watch out for, though. A United Kingdom is set to open the London Film Festival, a pit stop for awards contenders, later this year. He might also go around town, saying "Hey, you guys forgot to nominate me for Selma." He might also have that going for him.

Best Actress:
Amy Adams, Arrival
Annette Bening, 20th Century Women 
Viola Davis, Fences*
Ruth Negga, Loving 
Emma Stone, La La Land 

Replaced Emily Blunt and Isabelle Huppert with Amy Adams and Annette Bening. Science fiction isn't exactly the Academy’s cup of tea but Amy Adams is a 5-time Oscar nominee. That might allow them to overlook it if the film delivers. Annette Bening is also overdue with 4 nominations. If both get nominated, they could pose a threat to Viola Davis who is still looking like the frontrunner as of now.

Best Supporting Actor:
Mahershalal Ali, Moonlight 
Stephen Henderson, Fences 
Steve Martin, Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk
Ben Mendelsohn, Una 
Liam Neeson, Silence*

Replaced Jovan Adepo and Armie Hammer with Mahershalal Ali and Stephen Henderson. I'm predicting Moonlight to do quite well with Ali, who even just got invited to the Academy, getting in. Also, Henderson is playing the role he received a Tony nomination for and he could be this year's Mark Rylance: a primary theater actor who gets some recognition for his work in film.

Best Supporting Actress:
Naomie Harris, Moonlight 
Aja Naomi King, Birth Of A Nation 
Kristen Stewart, Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk 
Rachel Weisz, The Light Between Oceans 
Michelle Williams, Manchester By The Sea*

Replaced Nicole Kidman and Margot Robbie with Aja Naomi King and Rachel Weisz. Weisz has a slew of films set for this year but this one looks like it could be her ticket back to Oscar after winning about 10 years ago. Judging by the trailers, she has some pretty heavy material to work with.

Best Original Screenplay:
American Honey 
The Lobster 
Loving
Manchester By The Sea*
Zootopia 

Best Adapted Screenplay:
Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk
Fences*
The Light Between Oceans 
Moonlight
Silence

Best Cinematography:
Arrival
Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk*
Fences
The Jungle Book 
Silence

Best Original Score:
Arrival
Birth Of A Nation 
Finding Dory 
The Light Between Oceans 
Silence*

Best Production Design:
Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them
Miss Peregrine's Home For Peculiar Children
Passengers 
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story 
Silence*

Best Film Editing:
Arrival
Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk*
Birth Of A Nation 
La La Land 
Silence

Best Costume Design:
Birth Of A Nation 
Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them 
Fences
Love and Friendship
Silence*

Best Visual Effects:
Captain America: Civil War 
Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them 
The Jungle Book*
Passengers 
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story 

Best Makeup:
Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them 
Silence*
Suicide Squad 

Best Sound Editing:
Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk*
Jason Bourne
Passengers
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story 
Silence

Best Sound Mixing:
Jason Bourne
La La Land*
Passengers 
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story 
Silence

Best Animated Feature:
Finding Dory 
Kubo And The Two Strings
Moana
The Red Turtle
Zootopia*

Topic Of The Day: Can Actresses REALLY Not Have It Both Ways?

This post is kind of a sequel to my post about Keira Knightley and Kate Beckinsale and how they've had their looks focused on them rather than their acting ability.

Not too long ago, a cover story on Vanity Fair about Margot Robbie surfaced on the Internet and the author of the article, Rich Cohen, focused quite heavily on, survey says....her looks!

In his introductory paragraph, Cohen talks about how she's "sexy," "beautiful," and walks in a "catwalk way" as if she's a supermodel. Also, Cohen says how she rode from the beach of her hometown to the billboards around Sunset Boulevard. To me, the way he described her beauty along with her apparently "riding from the beach of her hometown" makes it seem like she got to where she is based mainly on her looks which is clearly not the case since she worked her own way into where she is now.

So instead of going on about her beauty, how about just talk about her rise to fame based on her talents?! Yes, Margot Robbie is a beautiful woman. We know that. But instead of writing like a horny high school freshman, Rich, just talk about the craft in her performances and focus on how she worked her way up to where she is now and she definitely didn't get to her position based solely on her looks. Martin Scorsese doesn't cast hacks in his movies and I know Leonardo DiCaprio doesn't work with hacks either. So, Margot Robbie is not a hack by any means.

Seeing this story frustrates me because that, along with the Keira Knightley and Kate Beckinsale situations, has me thinking: Can women in Hollywood REALLY not have it both ways?! When journalists and directors talk about working with a particular actress, is it possible for them not to talk about how they look? Guys, it's not rocket science.

We usually never hear about female reporters talking about how hot and attractive certain actors are. If that's the case, then we should stop having these males in the industry profession going on about a woman's beauty over her craft. Heck, Owen Gleiberman from Variety just did a story about Renee Zellweger, asking whether she's a different actress because she doesn't look like herself. Key word here being look. Zellweger is returning back to the screen after a long absence and is going back to doing what she loves and here, we have people commenting on her looks rather than her return to her profession. Unbelievable.

Anyways, that was my little rant about the sexism of Hollywood. I would love to hear about your thoughts about this whole situation down in the comments section. Thanks for reading!

Topic Of The Day: A Summer Of Apocalyptic Proportions

So when looking at this weekend and how The Purge: Election Year, which was made for around $10m, is performing better than The BFG and The Legend of Tarzan, which had much larger budgets (a combined $320m w/o factoring marketing costs) it got me thinking that something is fishy in Tinseltown and had me wondering what could be done to fix it. How can they make films all year round and not just in the summer where they can guarantee a good return on their product?

This summer, we've had a series of colossal underperformers: In particular, X-Men: Apocalypse, Warcraft, Alice Through The Looking Glass, and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out Of The Shadows. All of those were produced for at least $100m and three of them were sequels.

One way that problem can be fixed is if Hollywood were to greenlight more original content. I'm sure there are dozens upon dozens of original scripts piling up at each studio or agency. Go find them. Hollywood is a business where you can entice your customer with a new product. Especially when we have a possible onslaught of superhero movie fatigue since superheroes are what really drive Hollywood's box office dollars these days.

They should also think on a smaller scale. Some of the most successful films so far this summer were Central Intelligence, Me Before You, The Shallows, The Conjuring 2, and The Angry Birds Movie were made on more modest budgets, below the $100m range.

Another way in which Hollywood can guarantee a successful return on their products is if they have their movie stars start taking smaller fees upfront. If a movie that has a higher budget than it needs to be flops, it's likely because they're trying to satisfy the high salary demands of their movie stars. Personally, I think the studios should negotiate a smaller fee upfront, either 6 or 7 figures, and have the actors get their 8 figures on the backend. That way, their handlers (agents, managers, etc.) can collect a good chunk of their client's earnings, they get their $20m, and the studios get a nice return on their product. Everybody's happy.

So those are my thoughts on how Hollywood can fix its box office drought. What do you guys think? Do you agree or disagree? Please feel free to write your thoughts in the comments section and offer your own solutions to this whole crisis. Thanks for reading!

Indie Review: Swiss Army Man (2016)

   

               
                                       (Major spoilers ahead)

      Soooo, I can't really classify what genre this film actually is. Yet that's what makes this one sort of fascinating.

      Story:
      Swiss Army Man follows the story of a man named Hank (Paul Dano) who is about to hang himself on a deserted beach when he discovers a farting corpse named Manny (Daniel Radcliffe) who comes to life and slowly recaptures what it means to be human.

      Ups:
      First off, I thought the film's brightest spot is Daniel Radcliffe as Manny. Even as his character mostly mumbles his words and he has the same frozen face throughout, Radcliffe captures a variety of dimensions to his character, ranging from curiosity to optimism to even subtle torment. Also, kudos to Daniel Radcliffe for seeking out smaller interesting material that challenges him as an actor after Harry Potter. As for Paul Dano, though. He's fine. I like how this and Love and Mercy have shown how he's been maturing as an actor. But for me, this is Radcliffe's show.

     As I said in my opening sentence, there isn't really a particular genre I can place this film in yet that's what makes it fascinating. It isn't as if the film doesn't know what it wants to be but instead, it weaves in different genre elements into one. It feels like Cast Away with a corpse yet it is also a bit of a buddy movie about what it means to be human. Throughout the film, Manny is trying go relearn the normal aspects of human life. In particular, how it feels to love and there is even slight homoerotic subtext in the bond between Hank and Manny. There are scenes where Manny talks about how he doesn't know how to masturbate or have relations and in one scene where Manny and Hank are in the water and it looks like Manny is about to drown, Hank kisses him to metaphorically and literally bring him back to life.

      The production design on this film is some of the best I've seen all year. On the little island that Hank and Manny are on, they build replicas of places like a bus and a movie theater and I thought they looked very uncanny.

       Downs:
       There is even a big twist at the very end that caught me by surprised yet it also really lost me. I can't explain why without spoiling it so spoilers ahead. There is a girl that both Hank and Manny are infatuated with named Sarah, played by Mary Elizabeth Winstead, who Manny has pictures of on his phone. But it turns out to only be Hank's phone but it is a woman that Hank doesn't know and is stalking. That is where the film lost me because at the end, it made it difficult for me to sympathize with someone who puts pictures of a strange woman on his phone. Honestly, it almost made me less appreciative of the entire picture and its inventiveness. It just really bothered me.

       Consensus:
       Overall, Swiss Army Man is an unorthodox and inventive near gem that features an amazing performance by Daniel Radcliffe as well as lavish production design but it quite bogged down by its unsympathetic ending.

Grade: B