Sony Pictures' Venom Review

Out of the slumbers of the void and back into the light once more, October has arrived and a certain popular Marvel Character is being brought back into theaters with his own, solo origin comic book action thriller film.  That character is the iconic anti-hero and nemesis of Spider-Man called Venom, with Rubin Fleischer as the director as well as Scott Rosenberg, Jeff Pinkner, Kelly Marcel, and Will Beall as the writers for this new take on Eddie Brock and his encounter with the alien goo known as Symbiotes.  An interesting comic book factoid on the character himself, Venom was created by Todd McFarlane with David Micheline and sold to Marvel for use in the Spider-Man universe, who would serve as an inspiration to another popular anti-hero, Spawn.  With the numerous production drama reports, Sony Pictures insistence on making their own cinematic universe without Spider-Man but with his supporting characters/villains/worlds, and the fans demanding for the character to be done right, the enthusiasm is certainly there to make it a hit upon its release.  But with the recent critical evisceration yet mixed to positive response from viewers in general, the big question that lingers in everyone’s mind even supporters, how did this even get made in the first place?  Let’s discuss this with our own conscience and lay out the story to untangle our confused minds.

We follow an unlucky but tenacious reporter named Eddie Brock (Tom Hardy), who just lost his job at a TV station due to asking a mysterious yet confident CEO Carlton Drake (Riz Ahmed) of the Life Foundation regarding the secret projects going on with the recently discovered meteor that crashed in Malaysia and houses the infectious alien entity known as the Symbiotes.  6 months later, Brock is approached by a scientist known as Dora Skirth (Jenny Slate) about the experiments going on with the Symbiotes to create hybrids from the homeless people, for the next step in evolution.  He investigates the matter and in doing so during a break in of the Life Foundation’s facility, the Symbiote latches onto him as he escapes from the place with evidence of the illegal activities taking place in their San Francisco HQ.  Brock discovers that the alien has done more than just absorb itself into him.

Brock is bonded psychically to the creature referring itself as Venom (voiced by Tom Hardy), that takes pleasure in causing pain and killing people as well as feasting on their corpse, particularly the head.  This gets the attention of not only Drake and his militia, but also his ex-girlfriend Anne Weying (Michelle Williams) trying to reconnect with him and get the help he needs.   However, Venom has other plans for Brock that involves getting him a ride off Earth while another Symbiote travels to America for that same purpose.  As they get closer to their goals, they become stronger and form bonds to their hosts.  What transpires is a story of conspiracies and the duality of man and monster to become the iconic yet terrifying villain/anti-hero, Venom.

What was written before the review revisions after seeing the film, was more exciting than what happens in the film as the story has one of the dullest first acts reminiscent of the early days of comic book films that don’t get to the good stuff until the film is almost over.  It takes about an hour before we see Venom in the film as well as the awkward, weird direction going on with the way the characters act as well as the unnatural, cringe inducing dialogue at play here.  Also, how does it take a certain Symbiote, Riot half a year to get from Malaysia to San Francisco via Airplane? Never explained and just an annoying plot hole that represents the lack of foresight and multiple inputs put into this hacked up script.  It also doesn’t help that most of the characters are very much one note and contribute very little to the plot or the character of Eddie Brock besides plot conveniences or contrivances.  To elaborate, we take so much time having to establish the symbiotes as well as making sure Eddie Brock is likable, that the film barely has time to even get to the one aspect of the story that was compelling and done well in this snooze fest of a bland corporate thriller story, despite very little time spent on it.

It would be the odd yet fascinatingly funny dynamic between Brock and Venom providing most of the only real quality that the film can call its own, despite feeling like an accident instead of intentional.  They are truly funny and the conflict that resides between them about hurting others and eating them made for some interesting character moments that are never truly developed.  That’s because we must focus on generic evil genius plot no. 42 for most of the film as the villain Drake feels like a cartoon villain with his insanely broad plot for world domination as well as non-characters that add nothing to the plot at all especially regarding the female love interest.  The story when looked at closely, is strangely lazy and reeks of the broadest possible way to make this character exist without crucial elements of other characters and setups, for this film to exist at all.  There is only one final aspect of the story to discuss and that would be what they are trying to setup in the future.

You can clearly tell there is a sense of desperation and yet clear passionless drive to make their own universe of films evident by the lame yet very promisingly goofy post credit scene to tie it in.  There is only one scene, with an extended preview action scene for another promising film but without going into details, it has the goofiest wig and bonkers acting seen thus far in the film.  The story has logical problems, changes in motivations that make no sense (Venom changes his mind about his plans for a desperate attempt at an arc? Really?), characters acting moronic and dumb for some unintentional hilarity, and it has a climax that is CGI blobby mess that lacks any sense of tension or threat to the hero as well as being brief and anti-climactic.  In other words, it becomes more enjoyable to laugh and admire its mistakes rather than the very little successes it pulls off.

Let’s get to the cast with the focus mainly on Tom Hardy and the rest of the cast explored together as they contribute very little to the story.  Tom Hardy is a very versatile actor and performer, one of the few talented actors to really inhabit and transform himself into the role.  He is clearly the one person who not only cares in his completely zany performances but tries to make the character his own, despite how bonkers he gets with overacting his mannerisms and dealing with the CGI transformations that would seriously look goofy and unintentionally funny without it.  It doesn’t help that he goes for an awkward Bronx/Brooklyn accent that just comes across as comical and hard to take seriously as someone who is supposed to be a transplant from New York City.  However, the conundrum of this performance is that he truly is the one character we at least latch on to and empathize with out of the whole cast of characters.

When he gets attached to Venom, the film comes to life and shows its potential, despite how he only shows up in the 2^nd/last act of the story.  The character is surprisingly goofy for being a murderous alien creature, but he is portrayed that way in the comic books of today.  Venom is truly a fun opposite for Hardy’s Brock to act from, especially in the second half where he psychically communicates this needs and desires to him in the most auspiciously funny ways.  It is surprising how humorous the character comes across, especially when we learn of his reason to stay on Earth that not only feels corny as hell but makes the character even harder to take seriously or find menacing, made clearer by the 180 degree turn with his motivations for a lazy attempt at an arc.  Both Brock and Venom played by Tom Hardy is zany, quirky, and insane with his performances but man, it makes for some misguided yet entertaining hilarity throughout the film.

The rest of the cast are very much afterthoughts or just plot devices to get our characters from point A to B.  Riz Ahmed as Carlton Drake is a typical insane yet assertive genius that would make any employee question why they are working for a madman in the first place (that is seriously what happens in one scene).  Michelle Williams as Anne Weying is just a bland, generic MJ style girlfriend for Brock that adds very little to the plot and her romance with him is very awkward and lacks any believable chemistry between them.  Jenny Slate as Dora Skirth is just your typical scientist with a moral/guilty conscience to get our “hero” to the next story beat and upon doing so, is tossed right out of the story unceremoniously.  There are also a few bit players in odd roles as well as some fan service name calls (Jamison is named as a survivor of the shuttle crash, like in the comics and animated series) but they barely matter in the main story overall.  As stated before, there is not much for the supporting cast to provide for the story other than plot conveniences or contrivances to move the plot along.

Now, we get to the technical aspects and boy does this film feel oddly constructed in this area, starting with the cinematography/editing for the film.  This was shot and visually crafted by Matthew Libatique (funny info, also a cinematographer/DP for the recently released musical drama A Star Is Born) and it is kind of bland and generic in its modern setting as well as downplaying the iconography of San Francisco surprisingly.   However, the editors Maryann Brandon and Alan Baumgarten have literally created one of the most awkwardly paced and disjointed film edits yet, with scenes that go nowhere and the motorbike/car chase going on way too long to be intense or engaging to sit through.  They also let comedic moments go on for too long for the punchline to settle into the audience, creating awkward humor rather than being naturally funny.  This problem pertains to the action set pieces as well, especially the very little we get in this film shockingly enough but the sluggish first act makes Venom’s appearance after the hour mark a breath of fresh air despite how crazed and ultimately anti-climactic it ends up being by the climax.

So, the action set pieces in this film are very sparse but also poorly handled and suffer from the major edits made to make it suitable for young kids and teenagers.  There are really only 4 major action beats with a few odd sparks of it, mainly from Riot, the Symbiote baddie of the film.  The decent ones out of the bunch are the apartment throwdown and Lobby faceoff with SWAT as those provide enough impact and power to really show how much Venom is a force to be reckoned with, even without showing his insatiable taste for human heads.  The terrible ones are ironically the advertised ones being the car/motorbike chase (too long and monotonous,  despite being cartoonishly strange to watch) and the last battle between Venom and Riot (absolutely CGI puke infested mess that is mercifully short but ends up being an anti-climatic punch up) are prime examples of set pieces that rely way too much on CGI and provide the opposite of entertaining and energetically cool to watch.  Funny enough, all these set pieces occur in the second half of the film and that is a lot of runtime to sit through before you get to the good stuff you paid to see.

It might be strange, and yet the film already is but let’s mention the costume/wardrobe design for Venom.  It was pointed out that Riz Ahmed goes from being businesslike in appearance to slack wearing comfort clothes that are shown unzip as the film progresses (the only meaningful character development and arc given to generic bad guy # 28).  As for Venom, he looks fine despite not resembling anything like the comic version, mainly from not being tied into Spider-Man at all.  As for most of the clothes for the other actors, not much to discuss as they are mainly modern-day wear and are strangely business world type wear, creating a uniform look that lacks any distinctive characteristics further adding to the lack of remarkable visual identity to any of the characters outside of the random minor detail.

Let’s finally get to the last aspect of the film before we wrap this up, focusing on sound design in the uses of it throughout the film as well as the score/soundtrack itself as it serves an interesting point to add to the overall opinion on this film.  All the sound effects sound weighty enough to give the good action beats some weight to them as well as providing some creepy moments that veer closely to a horror film.  As for the score, it was composed by Ludwig Göransson(who recently scored Marvel’s Black Panther), but unlike that film’s unique and defined musical identity, this one lacks that creative passion by just relying on the typical epic sounds found in most typical comic book films.  And finally, a special mention to the oddly stylistically dated rap songs that are just as mesmerizingly awful in quality as the film itself, with the theme song done by Eminem that feels like the rap equivalent of edgy, dark rock emo songs akin to the similarly shaped soundtrack for another Marvel film back in the 2000’s Daredevil.  It is not a remarkable component of the film to discuss other than the weirdly crafted rap songs for this film that add to the backwards mentality of the existence of this type of comic book film today.

That lies at the heart of why this film is fascinating and grabbing people’s attention in all the wrong ways, as Venom is charmingly a byproduct of the cynical studio production line of comic book films made by people with no love or respect for the source material or character and just throwing darts drunkenly at a board full of moronic ideas and seeing what sticks to it.  This is not a quality film but a misguided and strangely constructed mess of a film that has characters acting illogical for plot conveniences as well as the story lacking any sense of urgency until Venom decides to show up about halfway through the film.  The visual look of the film is shockingly dated and bland with neither the cinematography or action set pieces really defining how this film is different from other Marvel films today or even comic book films back in the 1990’s.  That is not all, we have one of the most insane and board performances from Tom Hardy that truly gives it his all and comes across as the only one that is trying to have fun with this material.  Venom is the epitome of what comic book fans and film-goers had to put up with for decades and a reminder of how this genre has truly evolved beyond it for the better.

Score ** out of *****

Sony Pictures’ Venom is a uniquely bad “guilty pleasure” throwback film from an era of comic book films that have evolved the genre formula and expectations for the better.  Tom Hardy performances as Brock and Venom are the main and only genuine yet accidently done parts of the film that work.  It’s just a shame the film around that character is dull, lacks any sense of agency to the story, and is filled with bland, one note characters that exist for the plot and not to add the world or Eddie Brock as a character, especially if this is supposed to jumpstart a cinematic universe of Spidey’s supporting cast and villains.   The art direction throughout is very cookie cutter bland and lacks any sense of visual character to define it from the rest of the comic book films out there.  The action set pieces are too few and far apart from each other to keep the story from maintain any kind of excitement or engagement for long, especially when it lacks the violent grit and gory intention, only to be neutered by studio mandate.  Is it poorly made and misguided? Yes.  Is it fun to watch it fail on so many levels? It is.  In that context, it becomes unironically funny to watch this film with a bunch of pals, drunk enough to see it, and enjoy the oddities of this film and how it can exist in today’s world of comic book films that truly respect, honor, and spiritually adapt them to work on the big screen.  The exact opposite of what this film does but there is a clear audience and love for this film but probably not in the way Sony Pictures would have wanted. 

Searching Review

It is a good time for surprisingly quality films to come out featuring Asian actors/actresses as well as minorities in general, from the charming Romantic Comedy Crazy Rich Asians to the sharp, thoroughly engaging racial drama BlackKklansman, this month has released some great films onto the viewers everywhere.  Well, we might have another one just coming out called Searching, a crime/mystery thriller from writer/director Aneesh Chaganty with second writer Sev Ohanian, following a father played by John Cho looking for his teenage daughter after she disappeared one night from supposedly attending study group.  The film has been getting praise and love from its festival circuit run and it is sporting the novel style of technology visuals of Apple/PC to visually convey this crime story akin to certain Crime TV shows and most importantly, the horror/thriller series Unfriended.  Can this film inject something different into this formula or at the very least, make the concept and premise compelling and well written/directed?  Let’s boot up the computer and search through the clues by looking over this case’s story.

We follow the calm, loving father David Kim (John Cho), a single parent that looks after his teenage daughter Margot Kim (Michelle La) after his loving, caring wife Pamela Nam Kim (Sara Sohn) passed away from an illness specifically lymphoma, a year ago.  They both lead seemingly happy lives from the outside, with friends and their social lives brimming with normalcy.  However, one day, Margot goes to a study group late at night while her father goes about his routine with assurance of where she is.  However, the following morning, Margot never comes home from her night studies with her friends and David becomes worried that she disappeared.  So, after calling the police, David starts his journey to find his daughter through the local law enforcement agencies.

David gets into contact with Detective Rosemary Vick (Debra Messing), a veteran investigator that works indirectly with David to find Margot through different means and understand the reason behind the disappearance.  Despite their vigilance, the case is going cold by the day as there seems to be very little physical trace of her presence.  However, the only traces she left of her existence is through her digital activities and prints via her laptop and social media.  Told through the perspective of computers, phones, and technology in real time, the search goes digital as David becomes desperate to find her and understand the reason/circumstance behind her disappearance.  What transpires is a mystery where perception can truly shape a person’s life online, where the line of truths and lies are blurry, and the true reason for her disappearance will shake the foundations of this father’s life.

This has one of the most intriguing and tense mysteries that has been written for film in quite some time.  It helps that this crime story has an emotional arc and heart to it in the complicated relationship with Margot and David, as they are both affected in tragic ways by the passing of Pam, wife and mother.  Many of the red herrings and misdirection come from the emotional turmoil found in both characters.  But it is also refreshing to see a father that is both relatable and likable as well as understanding when his character goes through the harshest emotional beats of the story, challenging his notions of his feelings for his daughter’s life.  It is this very core element of the story that keeps the film from being too reliant on its own unique, visual storytelling gimmick that has become popular in the genre of horror/thriller but it must be noted that this is a crime/mystery thriller with no supernatural horror element to it at all, despite what the conflicting advertisement might convey to viewers online.

Which perfectly leads to another aspect of the film that not only feels timely but serves to give the film its own unique identity in the history of film, its exploration of social media and the growing use of technology conveying our lives to the world.  While films like The Social Network explored one aspect of social media, this film encompasses all of them as well as the search on different computers going from PC to Apple randomly.  It is for all intents, a true tech noir story that is reliant on the investigating elements of this story and slowly but surely understanding the circumstances behind Margot’s disappearance.  It does have flaws that keep it from being perfectly executed, where the second half isn’t quite as engaging as the first half of the film as well as breaking its own established rules of perspective to wrap up the story and provide the answers awkwardly despite ultimately being worthwhile to see the truth unfolded.  Its story is mainly driven by not just the mystery but the emotional conflict/core of the film being David’s search for the truth and understanding the turmoil that drove Margot to become distant towards him after the death of Pam, her mother.

The cast is relatively small but fully developed and performed by either newcomers or acting veterans in the film.  The main draw and heart of the film is John Cho as David Kim, who has to act mostly on his own and with very few characters but he conveys the desperation and turmoil of a father looking for his daughter effectively well.  He has to deal with many character shifts and changes on his own and he handles it efficiently well.  The other highlight of the cast is Detective Rosemary Vick (Debra Messing) investigating the disappearance of Margot voluntarily and she provides a very solid and remarkable turn as the determined officer with her own baggage as a mother to deal with.  Everyone else are in bit roles especially Joseph Lee as Peter Kim, David’s hockey obsessed, weed smoking but devoted brother and Michelle La as the distant, emotionally vulnerable daughter in her feature film debut all turn in solid performances throughout the short time they are in it.  It is mainly VO work and isolated performances but the committed and emotionally resonant core of the story allows these characters to really feel believable and interesting to follow.

Let’s get to the technical aspects of the film, starting with the cinematography and style of the film, as it builds upon a very creative and inventive approach to the horror/thriller genre.  The style developed by Juan Sebastian Baron is through the technology and social media software on hand from iPhones to Facebook, Tumbler, Instagram, and Youcast.  It is quite a unique way to convey the investigative nature of the film especially as it maintains the perspective on David’s search and the characters he interacts with to find Margot.  We stay on him for most of the film with only a few breaks from his point of view near the end of the film to unravel the mystery while entertaining, does betray the concept of seeing the story through one characters POV a bit.  Still, this is a very clever and concisely done way to convey a traditional crime mystery story with technology and social media with a bit of film wizardry to maintain the illusionary trick.

This plays also into the editing from Nick Johnson & Will Merrick, as they must convey the crime story as well as allow for this online world to be relatable and real to the audience.  The beginning of the film is essentially the heartbreaking, emotional life sequence of the animated film UP done in a very stylized way but still effective in setting up the characters and the relationship they have for each other.  As the film goes on, we see David’s routines and working on the computer until Margot goes missing.  For most of the film, we intercut between David investigating the people that knew Margot with the occasional news report that attempts to parody the sensational atmosphere of the news but does so that feels a bit incredulous and goofy in its execution overall throughout the film.  The film moves at a good pace without feeling any real lulls as it devotes enough time to developing David’s character arc with the investigation storyline through the editing.

Lastly, the sound design of the film is very minimal with only a few musical cues and theme to drive the character arcs throughout the story as well as the use of traditional computer sounds.  The musical cues and themes were composed by Torin Borrowdale and they fit rather nicely with the moments of clarity as well as a wonderfully distinctive and calm theme to establish the emotional core of David and his family.  It is however mainly just ambient noise and computer sound effects for most of the film, adding to the believability of the world itself.  Every sound has a reason to be hear or seen but it does allow for music cues to kick in for the purposes of conveying an important clue/revelation to the case and the emotional moments of David painfully reminiscing on happier times with his family.  Just like the visuals, the sound design is utilized to benefit the story but also to ground the world without feeling too gimmicky or illusionary to the creative choices made.

With the growing use of technology integrated into our lives by transplanting it onto social media, comes a new way and fear to commit crimes that are potentially more harmful than having it occur in real life.  This is what makes Searching a timely and engaging film made, with a personal story that showcases how manipulative and dangerous technology has made our ability to connect with each other and the secrets we place unknowingly online.  It also conveys a compelling and refreshingly emotional journey for John Cho as he works through the lies and deception to find his daughter, giving the standard yet well told mystery story weight to it through the depth and care given to the script as well as the actor himself.  It does falter in its ending as well as the way it gets to that point being a bit incredulous to accept but the emotional core and how it holds the story together is what allows for viewers to truly forgive the moments of contrivances and the ending of the story.  This is one case you will want to watch unfold before your eyes.

Score **** out of *****

Searching is a unique, fully realized conceptual crime mystery thriller that builds on its predecessor in the techno driven POV and builds an engaging, emotional story within the gimmick.  It has evolved the concept as another, legitimate means to convey a mystery that could have worked on its own, without the gimmick itself.  The cast while personal and intimate in size, are absolutely great in their respective roles with the standouts being Debra Missing as Rosemary Vick and the character arc she goes through but the MVP being John Cho, displaying his emotional versatility and commitment to a character that is mostly on his own.  The style and technical qualities to the film really add to the story and world conveyed here despite some issues with plot points being contrived in the second half and the climax might not be as satisfying as getting to it.  However, the film is a first-rate thriller and one that conveys a different approach to telling a familiar but well told mystery that hooks you in and keeps you invested until the revelations take the viewers by surprise, in an engaging and entertaining way.

Crazy Rich Asians Review

With the summer ending for this year of films, we have the anticipated film adaptation, based on the popular book trilogy from Kevin Kwan called “Crazy Rich Asians”.  It has been too long since an Asian driven film was made and released through the studio system based on another book, the engaging and sensitive family drama The Joy Luck Club and now we have this film coming out in theaters instead of streaming services where the romantic comedy/drama have found great success these days.  Directed by Jon M. Chu, not only does it star the latest Asian actors and newcomers from both America and Britain, we also have a focus on all aspects of Asian culture inherent to the story and the characters inhabiting this film.  Does it transcend those barriers and inherent cultural identities to tell a truly relatable and charming romantic tale of family and relationships for a modern time or does it fall into the trappings that have made this genre of films stagnant for years?  Let’s take a trip to the lands of Singapore, China and look at the talk of the town with the story.

The story introduces us to the Young family with Eleanor Young (Michelle Yeoh) buying a hotel in London, England as she is married to a royal prince of British descent with Nick Young and Astrid Leong-Teo as young children seeing how their world views would be defined by their mother’s use of her prestige and power of their name and wealth.  This leads us to the main focus of this romantic tale on Rachel Chu (Constance Wu), an Asian American NYU economic professor who teaches game theory but she has also been in a long term relationship with the grown up Nick Young (Henry Golding).  Nick’s best friend Colin Khoo (Chris Pang) is getting married and has invited him to be his best man at the wedding, with Nick inviting Rachel to come along to meet his family as well as his mother specifically.  This bit of news explodes on social media and reaches his family, piquing everyone’s curiosity and interest in the Asian American outsider that is dating the most popular bachelor of Asia and heir to the Young’s estate as well as their wealthy business ventures.  Rachel enthusiastically goes with Nick to Asia for the Wedding and she learns in a first class, expensive cabin on an Airplane to Singapore just how powerful and rich Nick truly is over in Asia.

They start their trip with the enjoyment of the pleasant food culture of Singapore with the engaged couple as well as Rachel reconnecting with her best friend and former college roommate Goh Peik Lin (Awkwafina), who actually gives her the rundown on how powerful the families are and not just on a wealthy level, but in regard to respect and influence of their family around the world, akin to the inherent nature of royalty.  However, Rachel meets with Nick’s mother, Eleanor and she is very cold and distant to anyone that has not been groomed within a native family with prestige and respect, with a clear disdain for Asians growing up in America with that country’s values.  On top of having to win the affections of Nick’s mother, Rachel learns about and connects with Nick’s extended family from Astrid Leong-Teo (Gemma Chan) to Oliver T'sien (Nico Santos), Shang Su Yi (Lisa Lu), Eddie Cheng (Ronny Chieng), Fiona Tung-Cheng (Victoria Loke), Alistair Cheng (Remy Hii), Alexandra 'Alix' Young (Selena Tan), and Felicity Young (Janice Koh), as she discovers just how eccentric, manipulative, and truly fantastical the world she has found herself in over in Asia.

This is a classic fairytale romantic comedy for a modern time but giving enough dramatic heft and conflicts to give the stagnant, formulaic genre some new perspectives as well as a great ode to the romantic comedy classics of yesteryears from the old days of Hollywood.  It pretty much follows the traditional beats of the genre well but does so with passion and the help of a stellar cast of actors/actresses with a wonderful chemistry to make their characters truly shine in the film.  It also has universal, relatable themes of family, marriage, love, relationships, and the clashing of values and cultures of natives with immigrants especially in Asian society.  The main romance between Nick and Rachel is truly charming and endearing to see them together, thanks to the capable script from Adele Lim with Peter Chiarelli and the committed, affectionate chemistry between Wu and Golding.  They are the beating heart of the story and their conflicts with each other as well as with Eleanor and her stern, family values are what gives the dramatic elements of the film weight and resonant strongly especially with those that always seem to have to choose between those we love and family we trust wholeheartedly.

Let’s get to the comedic elements of the story as it harkens back to the traditional style of comedy that was more reliant on satirizing gender roles and societal culture with wit and style.  That’s what you get with the writing for this film and it shows how much fun it must have been to provide some great natural humor with the family members of the Youngs interacting with the other families that are lower in statuses and power.  Rachel is also given a few humorous beats with her friend Goh Peik Lin (Awkwafina) providing some great cultural opposite comedy with her lifestyle and family always berating her failing in America unlike Rachel.  You would think they would have some low brow humor that would be crass thrown in but that is kept to a minimum thankfully with a reliance on character interactions and cultural satire to provide most of the quaint, humor with only the beginning montage being modern with its humor but it provides the laughs in the right places and becomes dramatic when the story calls for it.  It was important to distinguish these story elements as it is a balancing act between the two tones and styles, with the director/stars/and writers handling with finesse and respect towards the source material it is adapting here.

As the story is truly about Nick and Rachel’s romance and the personal family drama of winning acceptance with Nick’s mother to be considered apart of their family, we also follow the other family members in Nick’s extended family line with the focus on his favorite cousin Astrid Leong-Teo.  Her story is one surrounding a marriage where she and her husband Michael Teo (Pierre Png) want to be happy but strangely, not with each other.  It is with this storyline that it does go into soap opera territories that is compelling and does provide some decent heartbreaking romance drama, but it really doesn’t affect the main plot in a meaningful way.  Most of the family is essentially played mainly for humor and comedic relief.  While it helps to see how the other family members are for comedic scenes and effect, the dramatic subplot with Astrid isn’t given the time to be impactful or feel important to the main storylines.

Let’s get into the cast themselves, starting with the leads playing Rachel, Nick, and Nick’s mother Eleanor.  Constance Wu is truly phenomenal as the female lead for this story, portraying the innocent yet curious character she is for most of the film and truly handles both the humor and the eventual dramatic beats to truly be a well-defined and positive view of Asian American women as an actor and character.  While Wu truly carries the entire film, you can not down play how charming and amazingly charismatic Henry Golding is as Nick and while he does tend to be on the sideline for the majority of the second act, he truly clicks with the cast and Rachel to provide some natural humorous moments as well as making the romance believable.  In a role that is completely different from the other characters she plays especially as a former action star, Michelle Yeoh provides some classic stern motherly qualities with delight and truly imposing especially as the one person who questions Rachel’s intentions and her love for her son.  Those were the lead actors that are a part of the main storylines and played wonderfully by them.

We now get to the supporting cast and the ones that truly standout from the ensemble in either a comedic or dramatic role in the story.  One of the memorable comedic relief characters is Goh Peik Lin (Awkwafina) and she is truly very comfortable in the role as well as providing some good-natured humor with the lead characters as well as the dynamite chemistry with Constance Wu.  Astrid played by Gemma Chan (From the TV show Humans) is wonderful as the disenchanted wife and provides perspective on marriage through her character that is refreshing to see in a romance film, despite the issues with the subplot in general.  Everyone in the cast is great in their respective roles and scenes be it for comedic or dramatic purposes but a special mention towards a veteran actress Lisa Lu as Shang Su Yi, providing actual credibility to the culture represented here as well as a surprising respect for Asian talents from the past.  Those were the cast of the film and they were all marvelous together, as they elevate and make the script come to life on the big screen confidently.

It is now time to focus on the technical aspects of the film, starting with the use of cinematography and editing especially for this type of film set internationally as well as utilizing comedy throughout the film.  The DP for the film was Vanja Cernjul and his team showcases the beauty of Singapore along with the street/night life with the crew on hand.  They really make each locale from the opulent houses and resorts to the inner streets of Singapore pop out vividly as it is always very bright and colorful for most of the film but only goes muted in colors or cool within its color tones when the drama takes center stage.  As for the editing of the film by Myron Kerstein, it moves briskly with a lot of humorous and lively energy in the first half with the second half slowing down to allow for the character dramatic beats take over when the storylines come to their climatic movements.  The film is shot beautifully with its use of colors and lighting as well as the editing matching the fast and kinetic pacing at play here for its humor and world but slowing down enough for the drama to develop the characters/storylines.

Now we get to the aspect of the film that truly comes to life and that is with its art design/direction starting with the set design itself.  The production design was done by Nelson Coates along with art direction by Leslie Ewe, David Ingram, and Gary Mackay as well as set decoration by Andrew Baseman.  They deserve mentioning as the setting and world the characters inhabit are nothing short of stunning as they take many inspirations from the Queen of Versailles and so on to represent the wealthy dynasty of the Asian families with an Asian stylistic look to it.  Each locale in the story harkens back to the larger than life, spacious places of the old Romantic comedy films that utilized those art designs to showcase the powerful status of the character’s world as is the case with the Young family.  It is simply gorgeous and truly brimming with creative ingenuity and love for that era of filmmaking set design found in the romantic classics of old, enhanced by the stylings of Asian architecture and culture permeated into the look of the setting.

There is one more aspect of the art direction that must be mentioned and it is the visually eye catching costume work done for this film.  The designer of the many costumes for this film was done by Mary E. Vogt, who has designed so much iconic costumed looks from many genre films such as Dune and Batman Returns to name a few of her credits.  It seems to be a fusion of Asian and European designs to match the character traits and personalities as well as the inclusive but close knitted nature of these Asian royal families’ world.  Every character is very much distinctive and truly bursting with character in their costumes that truly defines them in their exquisite dresses/casual wear of the women and tailored/flashy looks for the men.  The costuming work for this film is truly top notch and worthy of accolades and recognition for every costume that were designed and wore in this film. 

Finally, it is time to look at the use of sound design and the soundtrack/score for this film as it was shot on location around Singapore as well as the expected use of popular songs throughout the film.  Well, the sound design is handled well enough especially for a studio production as the natural sounds of Singapore are heard along with the actors coming through clearly and the effects are appropriately applied for comedic or dramatic moments.  The score was done by Brian Tyler and his score uses an interesting mix of Jazz and traditional orchestra for the parties and the dramatic scenes effectively.  There is a notable use of pop songs and such for certain montages and it fits those scenes just fine but really the score provides some great variety to the soundscape of the film. At any rate, the sound design is fine along with a great companion score as well as some proper use of pop songs for certain scenes and montages.

There was some skepticism regarding the overall quality of this film before seeing it as it ran the danger of being bland or generic romantic comedy with an Asian cast/crew attached to it especially with the unproven talents of the writers and the unremarkable film work from Jon M. Chu.  However, as soon as the credits rolled, this was proven misplaced as everyone on this production brought their A-game to their respective roles in front and behind the camera to create a very charming, endearing modern day romantic comedy that is relatable in its humor, drama, and characters but with the added bonus of exploring and representing the cultural values and belief of family and respect for lineage/heritage through the lens of Asia.  It also helps to have a wonderful ode to Romantic cinema of old in its lovely, distinctive characters, witty and dynamic script, steady direction, and extraordinary looking film from the costumes to the world the cast inhabits.  This is a surprising quality modern film entry for the romantic comedy genre and a well-made one at that.

Score: ***** out of  *****   

Crazy Rich Asians is a loving update of the classic romantic comedy formula for a modern-day audience and it works on numerous levels that allow for a quality, entertaining comedy/drama of family and romance as well as providing a different look at Asian culture and characters that is rarely explored in storytelling and media.  It deftly handles the use of comedy and drama well especially as the film starts out in a fun, energetic vibe but transitions to the grounded and all too relatable family drama that feels earned and resonates powerfully on an emotional level.  The cast is truly fantastic as an ensemble but elevated by the inspired and wonderful casting of the lead characters from Constance Wu to Henry Golding and Michelle Yeoh at the core of the main story. The supporting cast are likable and provide some truly great humorous moments along with the use of witty and dry humor throughout the film akin to romance cinema of old.  It is also a gorgeous looking film from the cinematography to the art direction of the whole film’s setting and costume design.  If you wanted a modern day romantic comedy to rival the classics for a new generation, this film is more than up to the task to do so. 

Sorry To Bother You Review

What happens when you combine the volatile climate of political/social strife with a fantastic, up and coming cast, sharp satirical writing/direction, and film-making at its most inventive and creative? You get the truly eye-opening debut of writer/director Boots Riley called Sorry To Bother You, an absurdist, dystopian comedy that is not only a reverently, darkly funny film but also one that is subtle yet hard hitting with its commentary on society as well as the culture being shaped by corporate interests.  This was a critical darling during South By Southwest and has generated buzz at different festival with a talented and diverse cast at work here along with a great premise surrounding a telemarketer’s rise to power and the illogical world that surrounds that work culture in contrast to impoverished world surrounding it.   How does this film truly stack up to the greats of comedy/even science fiction itself (no spoilers but it does relate to that genre in a big way) and what does it do differently enough to tell its own cautionary tale in its own unique voice?  Let’s dive right into the call and check out this film’s story.

We follow our laid about but hopeful stoner Cassius Green (Lakeith Stanfield), who is looking for work and to provide a better life for his girl Detroit (Tessa Thompson) who is a performing artist that thrives on the belief of true self and rebelling against the norm.  They live in the lovely, rundown neighborhood of Oakland, California with his uncle Sergio Green (Terry Crews) and his family housing them in a spacious but dingy garage.  This is a society that has now become accustomed to free labor through a program called Worry-Free that promises to provide free food, bedding, and housing in exchange for your freedom and identity.  Not really liking that prospect from the leads, Green heads to a job interview for a telemarketer position for the company RegalView compliments of his friend Salvador (Jermaine Fowler).  Green has a rough time at his first days working as a telemarketer sales rep, as he continues to be rejected constantly by using his actual voice.

He is comforted by his girlfriend and approached by his co-worker Squeeze (Steven Yuen) to form a union to get workers paid fairly and on time as they should be, despite Green’s hesitation to rock the boat.  Until he is given advice by Langston (Danny Glover), a veteran sales rep that tells Green to use his white voice that resides in himself to change his very being to earn those sales and make money.  He demonstrates this (cameo by Steve Buscemi) for the newbie and Green gets it instantly.  Green finds his inner white voice (David Cross) and becomes RegalView’s top tier sales performer in the country, much to the dismay of his struggling friends and colleagues as well as his girlfriend.  He completely transforms himself and will discover as a power caller for the company that being the best, means having to change in ways that go against our own beliefs and humanity, which might reflect a different kind of prison.  Green becomes a part of a struggle between the working class and the rich and powerful, as he changes through the power of his voice.

This is a truly ambitious and satirically scathing film that makes it very clear of its themes, ideas, and subject matter it wants to make fun of or even provide thoughts on using comedic exaggeration.  When the film does this within its hyper-reality confines of the world and setting, the film fires on all cylinders in its delivery of the classic but zany rise and fall story well, lead by compelling performances from the entire cast.  The story zips through so much conflicts and ideas that are provided visually through satirized reality tv shows, the idea of slavery still being around in modern times but in the guise of indentured service, and the contrast of the lower class and upper class through the work culture.  This is what the film does exceptionally well, at taking our known realities and ramping the exaggeration up to the point where the conflicts mirror what we put up with everyday and this is excelled by the visual language of cinema feeling very passionate and strong throughout this film.  It seems like a perfect concoction of great visual eyes and sharp writing with a youthful, energized voice to really explore this wacky tale of artificial humanity for the process of making money and the conflicts that arise from it, what could possibly be flawed in this film?

Well, there are some problems inherent to the film in its pacing and most importantly, the views on this film being identified as Science Fiction as well as a comedy without giving away the very core nature of this story.  First off, the pacing does start off sluggish in the beginning, as it took some time for the story to kick in before we really get used to being in this story’s world.  For as much as it keeps to its hyper-reality, it does go completely bonkers by the end of the 2^nd act and shows its true nature in the most hard-hitting and unsubtle way possible.  This is where the film completely goes insane and does lose the amazing momentum and subdued comedy/drama that made its middle act so enjoyable to watch.  That doesn’t mean it’s a failure in execution, but it does come completely left field and there will be viewers that could be confused by the analogy that the twist does have to racism and slavery (the only clue that will be given here), which are at the very core of this story’s conflict for the characters to overcome in this film.  However, even with these misses, it is still amazing to watch it miss as well as succeed in what it does well, the comedic exaggeration in harmony with its hyper-reality without feeling disingenuous, pretentious, or even condescending as most film dealing with racism and slavery struggle to find that balance.

Let’s get into the talented cast in this film starting with the leads and then the supporting cast, with the focus on Stanfield as Green.  Stanfield is truly a versatile actor that embodies the everyday man stoner of this lead character and handles the changes the character goes through well.  David Cross as his white voice is reliably funny and really adds to the surreal nature of the story’s atmosphere.  Tessa Thompson as Detroit provides a very relaxed but committed performance as the rebelling artistic girlfriend that conflicts with the problems of society’s use of Worry-Free labor.  The leads are great in the roles and provide likable yet larger than life characters to follow into this dystopian society that is not too different from ours.

The supporting cast is very diverse in talent and characterization that add to the grounded yet surreal nature of the story.  Steven Yuen plays Squeeze, the radical worker that is always going against the norm of the work force for better wages and he plays it earnestly with humanity to the character.  Another stand out of the cast is Jermaine Fowler as Salvador, who provides some great humorous moments both crude and subtle in timing and his interactions with the other characters.  However, Armie Hammer as Steven Lift (a parody of Steve Job) totally steals the second half with his arrogant, obliviously evil character that does way too much coke and completely ignorant to the world/society that doesn’t involve dollar bills. There is also Omari Hardwick as Mr._____ with the voice from Patton Oswalt providing a stern but dry humorous performance to contrast with the chipper, upbeat performance from David Cross greatly.  The entire cast is on point here and that is a credit to the sharp script and confident direction on display here.

Let’s get into the technical components of the film, starting with the art direction of this setting and the combination of the grounded with the exaggerated.  The setting for the film is Oakland, California and it’s about as rundown as it gets contrasting with the nightlife, seedy parts of the world with the characters lower in status than the power callers.   There is a great blend of urban poverty with the sleek, cold lifestyle of corporate culture in the locales and settings especially being set around California.  The only visual motifs that has futuristic elements with the Worry-Free factory along with the reality show “I Got The S*!T kicked out of me” along with the great use of space with each locales to showcase the economical disparage of this world.  It is wonderfully crafted in its art direction in creating an exaggerated reality to the setting of this story that matches the satire it instills in its visuals.

Next up, the cinematography and editing of the film from structure to the distinctive look of the film.  The film uses a wide range of colors especially for a film that deals with some heavy and real subject matters by using it effectively to showcase the struggling conflict of the lead and the two worlds he inhabits.  The director utilizes his music video experience with the editor Terel Gibson to really play with time and motion within a scene that allows for the absurdist comedy to happen in the film.  The editing is solidly put together and allows for the characters to develop with each other and feel the impact of the changes they go through especially with the character Green.  While it does have its pacing problems in the beginning and loses its focus by the time the last act rolls around, it is a visually vibrant and energized film that is committed to its story and characters even if it doesn’t always stick to the landing.

Lastly, the sound design and music score from Tune-Yards & The Coup that features mostly composition music as well as the use of non-diegetic sounds to establish its style for the film. The sound design is very much a character in this film as we have sounds that do not match the source of it, within the characters putting on their white voices.  It is well timed and provides for some truly subtle humor in a film that is mostly about the abstract and absurd with its comedy.  As for the score, it is a mix of synth/hip hop beats with classical music that serves as an interesting contrast for where the characters are within the story.  The important takeaway is that the sound design for this film is used effectively and adds to the surreal nature of the film’s story and comedy.

Sorry To Bother You is one of the most inventive and relevant social comedies that touches upon ideas and themes that our culture and world can relate to in its satirization of it.  The enthusiastic and well put together cast really make the most out of this sharp and witty script through their fully realized performances.  This is made possible by the confident direction from a first-time director but also a musician who has a keen eye on how to tell a story with meaning and purpose without losing its sheer entertaining value at all.  Thankfully, the film comes together as a whole and presents ideas of racism, slavery of all kinds, corporate culture, and media oversaturation despite its few shortcomings in balancing these story elements with the characters as well as its odd, possibly alienating finale.  So, if you have what it takes, sign up for RegalView and you can be a “Power Caller” as well!

Score **** out of *****

Sorry To Bother You is the surprising gem of the year that comes out of nowhere to be not only reverently funny but insightful with its commentary on the troubles of the world today.  It invokes the energy and passion of other satirical comedies of the past few decades in its absurdist approach to the story as well as the eccentric characters that inhabit this exaggerated yet grounded world of Oakland, California.  The story reaches its potential and peak in humor and satire by the time the film hits its second act despite a very slow, ropey beginning and its ludicrous and uneven finale.  This is made better and truly entertaining by the terrific performances from the entire cast including Lakeith Stanfield and Armie Hammer turning in amazing performances, with everyone else fitting into their characters and playing to their strengths as actors.  It also has an exceptional sound design that plays with the idea of having voices not match the actors to demonstrate the key characters’ white voice along with a unique blend of classical music with synth, hip hop beats throughout the film.  This is one call you might want to take, because it might give you something to reflect upon with today’s world, while have a blast with this larger than life, surreal comedy.