The Martian (8/10): Let's talk science!

“I don't want to come off as arrogant here, but I'm the greatest botanist on this planet.”

Ridley Scott’s latest film, The Martian, is an intelligently crafted science fiction drama that takes on the form of a problem-solving movie in a very nerdy way. It is not an easy movie to sell considering it is very talkative and there is a lot of science involved, but Drew Goddard’s adaptation of Andy Weir’s novel is quite captivating. There is no denying that the true star of the film is Matt Damon who basically manages to put on a one-man show in Mars and deliver a very entertaining performance in a similar way to what Tom Hanks did in Castaway. Although this film does give much more screen time to the characters back home as they try to communicate and find a way to bring their astronaut back, but it is Damon who really stands out. The film has been nominated for the Golden Globes for best comedy and although I don’t agree with that designation it is Damon who delivers the comedy through his charismatic performance as he faces each new struggle in quite a light and positive way. The movie is a drama more than anything else and it carefully studies every scenario of what could go wrong in Mars and presents interesting solutions to those problems. Ultimately that is what makes this film stand out from other space films which Ridley himself has directed. This is a different kind of movie, a survival film with brains that respects its audience and doesn’t try to include any fantastical elements for entertainment purposes (not that I have a problem with it since I was a huge fan of Prometheus, but this is a completely different genre).

Matt Damon gets all the credit for his charismatic performance as Mark Watney, the astronaut who is abandoned in Mars after a storm breaks out and his crew is forced to leave him behind, but the supporting cast is quite impressive as well. Jessica Chastain is Melissa Lewis, the astronaut in charge of the mission who has to make the fatal decision. The rest of the crew members are Beth Johanssen (Kate Mara), Rick Martinez (Michael Peña), Chis Beck (Sebastian Stan), and Alex Vogel (Aksel Hennie). They don’t get much screen time, but they are each given their moment and it is enough to know what motivates their decisions. I would’ve enjoyed to spend more time with these characters considering the cast is wonderful, but Matt Damon doesn’t even give us time to miss them. The focus is on his character and he delivers every line to perfection. We are instantly drawn to his character and we identify with his struggle to survive. Back home at NASA headquarters we are also introduced to several characters who are doing the best they can to bring Mark home. Jeff Daniels is Teddy Sanders, the man responsible for any decision taken as the NASA director, Kristen Wiig is Annie Montrose, the director of Media Relations who is trying to save face in the midst of the situation, Sean Bean is Mitch Henderson, the flight director who is in contact with Watney’s crew as they are returning home, and Chiwetel Ejiofor is Vincent Kapoor, the mission director. It’s surprising how Ridley Scott manages to include all these characters in the film and give them a unique personality as they all join forces to come up with the best solution. Daniels plays a very similar character to who he plays in The Newsroom, but if you only know him from Dumb and Dumber than you are in for a treat.   

When I first heard about this movie I was a bit worried about the effects that recent space films like Interstellar (which also starred Matt Damon and Jessica Chastain), Prometheus (which was directed by Ridley Scott), or Gravity might have on The Martian considering the space theme. To my surprise, the film stands out from the very opening scene as it takes a totally different approach and focuses more on Mark’s survival skills and his wit. He is a very charismatic character who easily pulls you in to his conflict and allows you to participate in the problem-solution process. This isn’t about special effects, it is about intelligent people getting together to come up with a solution.

Pixels (4/10): Recycled Sandler humor with a bit of action adventure in the mix.

“I believe that some alien life-force, has sent real life video games, to attack us.”

Chris Columbus, the man who directed the first two Harry Potter films as well as Home Alone, Mrs. Doubtfire, Adventures of Babysitting, and many more family friendly films that I actually enjoyed, now directs Adam Sandler in Pixels, a film that aims to appeal to those adults that grew up in the early 80’s playing classic arcade games, but unfortunately it only ends up being entertaining for younger audiences due to its cliche jokes and formulaic structure. I must confess that I once was a huge Adam Sandler fan and watched everything he did from his Billy Madison days up to Jack and Jill in 2011 (with Chuck and Larry being the only exception, which somehow I miraculously missed). As a young teen I found his movies hilarious, but as I grew older his schtick got repetitive and I somehow decided to give up on him. I hadn’t seen another film starring Sandler since Jack and Jill, but decided to give this one a try for nostalgic sake and because Columbus’s films usually appealed to me despite his films being overly sentimental at times. It didn’t hurt that Peter Dinklage was also starring in this film since I love what he does (his short scene in Elf is one of my favorites and he is awesome in Game of Thrones). All these factors managed to convince me to watch Pixels despite my low expectations and I honestly got what I was expecting. It’s as if Adam Sandler directs all his comedies because they are so similar in tone despite never having directed, but I guess the directors always let him improvise and he ends up making the same jokes in every movie. The only positive feedback I’ll give Pixels is that it did manage to engage with the younger audiences; my ten year old brother had a blast, so it might make some money at the box office.    

Based on Patrick Jean’s own screenplay for a short film he made in 2010 (which seems far more appealing to me), this feature film opens in the 80’s with a group of kids who grew up loving arcade games. Brenner (Anthony Ippolito) is so good at predicting these game patterns that he signs up to compete in an arcade national championship. His closest friend, Cooper (Jared Riley), is there cheering for him and he truly believes Brenner is destined for great things in life. During the tournament they also befriend a young boy named Ludlow (Jacob Shinder) who is obsessed with a cyber game character named Lady Lisa (Ashley Benson). Unfortunately, Brenner is defeated by Eddie (Andrew Bambridge), a loud mouthed arcade lover who goes by the nickname of fire blaster. The film then jumps to the present where we discover Brenner (Adam Sandler) hasn’t really accomplished anything in life. He installs technical equipment for a company called Nerd. Cooper (Kevin James) however has become the President of the nation. Nerd sends Brenner to Violet’s (Michelle Monaghan) home to install the latest gadgets for her young son Matty (Matt Lintz). Brenner and Violet have a small moment, but when he tries to lean in and kiss her things get ugly between them. Right after that awkward moment Brenner receives a call from Cooper about an alien attack on Earth (and so does Violet who is then revealed to be a Lieutenant). Apparently these aliens have attacked using the arcade game format created through pixels, and the only way to defeat them is similar to the way they played the game. Brenner enlists the help of Ludlow (Josh Gad) and his archenemy Eddie (Peter Dinklage) to try to defeat these alien invaders and save the Earth.

As ridiculous or appealing as the premise sounds (depending on wether or not you’re nostalgic over these classic arcade games) the greatest problem with Pixels is that its incredibly hard to believe some of the relationships between these characters. The first time Adam Sandler and Michelle Monaghan’s characters meet, the dialogue between them is so phony and forced that it makes it impossible to relate to. That scene was probably one of the worst I’ve seen all year. Kevin James, Josh Gad, and Brian Cox can be funny people, but they play the same characters they’ve been playing in recent years. Dinklage’s Fire Blaster seems to be either hit or miss for some people, and I actually found his character to be the funniest in the movie. No one here is actually trying hard and the film is proof of that, but audiences that are simply looking to escape for a couple of hours might find it amusing. I still don’t know what Jane Krakowski was doing in this film since her character isn’t given anything to do despite her comedic talents. She should’ve been used more. Pixels is recycled Sandler material that will only appeal to hardcore 80’s nostalgic gamers and young kids who enjoy pretty much any adventure.   

Jupiter Ascending (6/10): The comedy exceeds the sci-fi in the Wachowski's latest film

“Your Majesty, I have more in common with a dog than I have with you.”

With the exception of Speed Racer and The Matrix Revolutions I have always enjoyed the Wachowskis films and their unique vision. I haven’t seen Speed Racer since it was first released, but I have heard a lot of praise for it in recent years so I might need to revisit it soon considering many people have claimed it was way ahead of its time. Jupiter Ascending may be one of their weakest efforts because the plot is messy and convoluted, but the film still looked great and had an underlying sense of humor about it. When I watched the trailer for the first time my high expectations were tamed, but I actually ended up enjoying the movie more than I had anticipated due to the comedy. The Wachowskis have interesting and unique ideas and somewhere in Jupiter Ascending there are some, but the film fails to develop the story. The Wachowskis might have been trying to direct the Star Wars for this generation, but I’m sorry The Guardians of the Galaxy got there first. 

A lot of critics have claimed the film is so ridiculous that it’s unintentionally funny, but I have to disagree. I think they were aiming for a sci-fi comedy that isn’t supposed to be taken seriously. The Wachowskis are having a lot of fun with the characters Sean Bean has been playing in the past and he is great here. There are some great hilarious scenes about the bureaucracy in the Universe. There is another one taking place in a space ship involving an elephant man which reminded me of some of the wacky characters that had small roles in Star Wars. Eddie Redmayne is amping it up as a villain and has taken a lot of criticism for his performance, but he too is part of the fun the Wachowskis are having with the film. Everyone is so focused on the incredible Chicago chase scene at the beginning of the film, but I wasn’t really blown away by it. What stood out for me was the wacky sense of humor (the bureaucracy scene is my favorite). I may be reading to far into this film, but I felt they were also poking fun of Twilight with the love triangle in the middle of the movie involving the gorgeous Mila Kunis, the very pale looking Douglas Booth, and the dog man Channing Tatum. At times they also reference Beauty and the Beast, and the Terry Gilliam cameo proves they were influenced by his work in Brazil. 

I haven’t spent any time detailing the plot because it is hard to set up this expanded universe. The Wachowskis take their time to introduce this world and set things up. They have some interesting ideas, but they aren’t developed too well and the action set pieces take over. This had the potential of being The Fifth Element, but the Wachowskis were aiming a bit higher than that and missed the mark. Channing Tatum and Sean Bean give the best performances in the movie, while Mila Kunis was miscast in my opinion. Eddie Redmayne’s talents are also wasted by the way the Wachowskis wanted him to play the character. Jupiter Ascending looks great and the humor got to me, but the sic fi elements weren’t that great. This is a forgettable film, but I was entertained.