The Butler (Film Review)

      Despite some decisions that hold it back, The Butler makes a lasting impression on race relations in America, and it does rather well without doing the overwrought histrionics of typical films that overlook context. Inspired by the true story of Eugene Allen, who served under eight administrations from 1952 to 1986; he was profiled in a Washington Post article during the 2008 presidential election. 

      The Butler starts from the cotton fields in Macon, Georgia in 1926 with a younger Cecil Gaines witnessing the death of his father from the son of a slave owner. This is when Cecil encounters the mother of the estate, played by Vanessa Redgrave, who teaches him to be a Butler (she actually refers to him as a “House N*****”). The movie then advances to the 1950s, where Forrest Whitaker plays the grown-up Gaines and he encounters landmark decisions on race, wars, JFK’s assassination and life after the job. Sophia Gaines, played by Oprah Winfrey, wishes that her husband wasn’t devoted to his job and would be there for her and his two sons during the changing times in America. Much of the film is a gallery of flashbacks of events seen from the eyes of one man who didn’t change the world or, thus, save it; he served until it was time to leave his post.
      
      Surprising to note this movie wasn’t as heavy-handed as I thought it would be, considering, historical pieces tend to do too much grandiose material regarding America’s past history. The performances by the core cast impresses enough that it doesn’t collapse under its own weight of the material. President Lyndon Johnson’s portrayal by Liev Schreiber was pretty profound while the other ones by John Cusack (Nixon), Robin Williams (Eisenhower), Alan Rickman (Reagan) and James Marsden (JFK) aren’t as effective, but they do try their best for their scenes. David Oyelowo, who plays Cecil’s elder son Louis, is easily the best of the bunch here, and, weirdly enough, was the star of this film. Forrest, I thought, played this character straight enough that you understood his constant struggle of a man living two lives: family man & butler to his administration. 

      Now, there’s nothing wrong with that, though, after about 40 minutes into the movie, I got the point. And, at times, it does seem as if the movie is holding back on its core messages, especially on segregation. Cecil wouldn’t even discuss much politics amongst his family or friends let alone random people who ask him about integrating the schools. That was around the time of the 1954 Supreme Court case: Brown vs. Board of Education. 

      There’s enough here to hold your interest in the source material, yet, I just wasn’t that riveted, because it does get long-winded near the end. While this is a solid movie that covers a lot in our history, it doesn’t do much with improving our intricate race relations. As it stands, it’s a solid dramatization of an exceptional article fictionalized for the big screen.

Elysium (Film Review)

  Director Neill Blomkamp tackles the issues of poverty, immigration and privilege in Elysium; a solid, if, unfocused movie that starts off well, but succumbs to being an action movie in the second act. The concept of Elysium is a clever one, sort of like our current political and financial situations.

     Set in 2154, the well-off are on-board a satellite, built by the Armadyne Corporation, that is separated from the one on our weary planet. Earth is now an abandoned wasteland for the ones not so well-off. The protagonist is Max, played by Matt Damon, who used to be a criminal in his years and later reformed. His dream was to make it on-board the satellite with his friend Frey, played by Alice Braga. Unfortunately, one day on the job changed his life forever, after exposed to a dose of radiation at an Armadyne factory. With only five days to live, getting to the heavily-guarded satellite just went on Max's bucket list; but, in order to infiltrate it, he would need a lot of help underground from a group of hackers, who then equip Max with the exoskeleton to defeat the droids and people who patrol the planet.

     One of the most intriguing things about this film, is how the Immigration angle as it relates to people of earth being reduce to "earthlings" and not just people. There's one scene in the film, that shows the disconnect between the two classes, in which, wealthy people are in fear of their own opposition, while the poor are looking to heal family members or have a place for shelter. Blomkamp brilliantly captures this conflict as if this were a real-life struggle. But, in Secretary Delacourt's world, the small are nothing more than peasants on a pristine world who serve no purpose but to rot on planet Earth. Jodie Foster's Delacourt is a woman with no conscience and cares about her kind. She'll do everything to gain absolute power, especially with the help of sleeper agent "Krueger," played by District 9's Sharlto Copley. Alas, this is where the movie becomes a bit too ambitious for its own good. After a well-paced first half, the movie takes a hard turn into the absurd, with characters making last-second decisions giving the entire story a neglected feeling. And, it's too bad what starts off as a well-paced movie that is held together by the strength of its story until it’s not anymore.

     While, it was fun seeing stuff blown up, yet, it extracted some enjoyment from me. Compared to the bombastic climax of District 9, Elysium is on par with that film, but Elysium suffers more because, despite the heavy-handedness of District 9, its Apartheid allegory felt intact, while, this movie loses its momentum after act one is over. The sudden plot changes really hurt the subplot of who controls the plutocratic land. And, although, the action sequences hold your interest, they do little to advance an intriguing premise. The 99% movement needs better messaging.

The Wolverine (Film Review)

                I wasn’t looking forward to another X-men themed adventure, beside “First Class.”  The last time there was a film involving Wolverine, it was 2009’s X-Men Origins: Wolverine, and it was a sore sight to see. So, I’m happy to report that The Wolverine is significantly better than the film that was intended four years ago and is has a lot more depth than advertised.

Logan has disbanded from his teammates after the events of “The Last Stand” and is a shell of his former self. He can’t live himself after impaling Jean Grey (Dark Phoenix) to prevent further casualties all those years ago and has recurring dreams about his former love periodicity throughout the film. He meets up with a girl named Yukio, who then brings Logan to Japan to meet up with an old friend from the past who heads one of the biggest corporations in Japan: The Yashida Corporation. Back in 1945, Nagasaki was attacked by the United States during World War II by an Atomic Bomb. Logan proceeds to save Yashida from the impact of the bomb and is rewarded with the opportunity of having mortal life. His healing powers are a thing of the past, at that point. What becomes more than a simple thank you, turns into a fight against death and Yashida will stop at nothing but to live forever.

What makes The Wolverine such an engaging film is how Hugh Jackman is able to convey Logan’s conflict of not be indestructible anymore and the imbedded guilt that has traumatized this soldier. It’s a nice change of pace for a series longing for ingenuity. The fight scenes are elaborately designed with good techniques and aren't reliant on much use of CGI; easily the film’s best moment comes aboard on top of a high-speed train, which features good direction from director James Mangold throughout most of the entire film. Other parts within the film seem like filler, for example, the Viper character is given little to do here. Her act was tired right after she poisoned the 3,457^th character in the film and the last half-hour tends to fall apart with odd twist and turns, especially with The Sliver Samurai making its presence felt, and, also, while the minor sub-plot of having Logan protect the Mariko Yashida is fairly good, that love story is a bit forced. That said, The Wolverine is an enjoyable movie, which makes up for the suckage that was 2009's "Origins." 

Nonetheless, The Wolverine is a satisfying movie with enough action and story to keep you invested throughout the film and is a nice prelude to next year’s Days of Future Past. If you've managed to stick around for during the credits, there’s a nice surprised in-store for the most patient.