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.   

My Review: Frozen (8/10)

"Winter's a good time to sit close and cuddle, but put me in summer and I'll be a happy snowman!"

Frozen may not be among Disney's best animated films, but it sure is a warm and charming one. The animation was gorgeous and looked really beautiful, while some of the characters were quite fun and memorable (Im thinking mostly of Olaf the snowman here). It balances the classic fairytale elements from other Disney movies, while at the same time bringing in some surprising twists to the mix. The Disney princess formula may be old, but it continues to work and charm audiences over the world, and it doesn't hurt that Frozen adds some fresh elements to the known and bankable formula as well. Frozen relied heavily on several musical numbers like most of the classical Disney animated films did, so it also manages to have a nostalgic effect on those of us who grew up watching those movies. This is a fun and warm film that the entire family will enjoy. It's not perfect, it has some very cheesy moments and lacks a stronger villain, but it has plenty of heart and laughs to carry the film.

Directed by Chris Buck and Jennifer Lee and loosely based on Hans Christian Andersen's fairytale, The Snow Queen, Frozen is a tale of two sisters, Elsa (Idina Menzel) and Anna (Kristen Bell), who grow up together in the palace of Arendelle. Elsa has a magical power which allows her to turn things into ice and snow. At first it's all fun and games, but when Elsa's power increases she cannot control it any longer and is forced to live secluded in her room. After an unfortunate accident Elsa brings an eternal winter to Arendelle and runs away from the palace ashamed for what she has caused. Elsa sets out on an adventure to bring her sister back with the help of a mountain man named Kristoff (Jonathan Groff) and his reindeer Sven. Along the way they encounter a friendly snowman named Olaf (Josh Gad) and together they face the cold weather as they search for Elsa in order to bring her back home, but Elsa fears her powers have become too dangerous and is afraid to return home.

Lee happens to be the first female director of a Disney animated film, and she delivers by creating stronger female characters. Frozen becomes more than anything a story that centers on these two sisters and the bond between them. Fear gets in the way of their relationship and it's up to them to overcome it. They are strong characters that don't depend on a prince to come to their rescue. That is what makes this classic fairytale take a modern turn. It is gorgeously animated and has some very warm moments with some catchy songs. Olaf also delivers most laughs in this film. It was just a fun and entertaining film and one more that succeeds in Disney's long line of memorable films. 

My Review: jOBS (5/10)

"If you don't share our enthusiasm and care for the vision of this company. Get out! You're done."

How could you make a biopic about an inspirational and visionary man in such a bland manner? The film lacked the very elements that made Steve Jobs such a creative entrepreneur. It's a shame because the subject matter alone almost guarantees you will watch a great film. Jobs has altered our lives; at this very moment I'm writing from one of his Mac computers while my brothers are chatting on their iphones and listening to music on their ipods. Somehow such great material got lost along the way and this Joshua Michael Stern directed film simply looks like a made for TV biopic. It is one of those movies that are so uninspired and consist of bad writing that you simply thought it was made for TV. Take for example The Social Network, a film about the creator of Facebook, a biopic I thought beforehand was going to be dull and boring, but was completely blown away by Aaron Sorkin's script. He made Mark Zuckerberg look completely appealing. But here we have a much more visionary person like Steve Jobs whose story we all want to see told on film and the result from Matt Whiteley's script is completely uninspiring. The film could be called Apple Inc because it felt like it focused more on his creation than on the creator. There is nothing innovative about this biopic, but the good news is that Aaron Sorkin is working on a script for another Steve Jobs biopic that hopefully will make justice of such an inspirational man. I can't even blame Ashton Kutcher for the failure of this film, because the main problem here was that the script  was so bland that all we had were one dimensional characters having uninspired dialogues. If I had never heard of Jobs before I would've thought that this visionary and charismatic leader was simply a dull and unloving person. You simply don't care for the Steve Jobs that's presented here.

The film begins by introducing us to Steve Jobs (Ashton Kutcher) as he is presenting his latest creation, the ipod which will change the way people listen to music everywhere (as we already know). That is as far as the film goes as we jump back to the past and see Steve dropping out of college sometime during the 70's. He attended some creative classes simply as a drop in, but he spent most of his time getting high with his friend Daniel (Lukas Haas), with whom he also travelled to India for a spiritual visit. Back at the US, Jobs worked at Atari where he had trouble getting along with his coworkers. He was offered a special deal to create a circuit board and that is where he got his friend Woz (Josh Gad) to help him out. After having success, Jobs and Woz partnered together selling circuit boards and founded their own small business in his parents' garage. Along with Daniel and Woz, Steve hired Rod Holt (Ron Eldard) to help out with the engineering of the first Apple computer. Their next challenge was to get the funding needed to build the company, which they finally got from Mike Markkula (Dermot Mulroney). The film then goes on to focus on Apple's early success and later Steve's trouble getting along with the company's CEO, John Sculley (Matthew Modine), his forced retirement from his own company and then his return to Apple several years later. 

It's a shame the film focused so much on Jobs's turmoil years and left out the most creative period of his life: his successful return to Apple. I was OK with the fact that it showed his early beginnings at his garage because that is where the dream was born, but I wish the film would've focused more on his successes. Jobs wasn't portrayed as a saint either, and that is a plus, we see how turbulent and erratic his behavior was at times as a temperamental manager. Ashton Kutcher wasn't terrible as Jobs, he got some of his posture right (the scene where he walks across the hallway at Apple is near perfect) and at times the tone of his voice was also right, but I also felt that there were several scenes where he lost that voice and simply became Ashton Kutcher again. The narrative structure of the film didn't work either. I felt there were so many moments that seemed disconnected at times and rushed. It's like they got some details right, but the motivation behind Jobs' work was left out. His character lacked depth and so did everyone else's who simply come in and out of the film to set the next stage. I don't think that the perfectionist "Father of the Digital Revolution" would've approved of this movie if he were alive today. The biopic simply scratches the surface of Jobs' life, but stays away from his heart and what really motivated him to be the visionary innovator he was. I'll be looking forward to Sorkin's take on his life.