Monkey Man

Goddamn that was great.

In terms of action fare this year with so far the only competition being The Beekeeper, not only do I think this far outshines that movie but Monkey Man may be the best action film I'm going to see all year. Taking a typical revenge film and adding so much in terms of culture, cinematography, and even pathos the directorial debut of Dev Patel immerses you into this world and story almost immediately, showing the righteous fury of a young man seeking retribution for his mother's death at the hands of government and even spiritual leaders. Set at a solid 2 hours the film takes it's time in telling this story, in fact the trailer I saw only really shows the first act and has moments where it reigns back and gives breathing space even when the action is not audacious or break neck speed. The sheer basis of the fact that the movie is brimming with so many facets of India is what made me give this film a fair shake, the stark and wide berthing line between rich and poor, the clothes, the religious customs, the food, the music, the sad but unfortunately true continuing conflicts and tragedy that were not just confined to the partition. And for someone like me, I love this stuff! To even briefly experience a part of the world in all it's sights and sounds is a treat. It even brought up things I hadn't truly considered, there is a transgendered character named Alpha who aids our protagonist and shows how they are viewed in that country. In all seriousness I thought that character was handled beautifully, showing such an open helping hand with such care and warmth, I thought it was so lovely. Dev Patel both in front and behind the camera does not come up short, bringing a lot of passion and style, it's hard not to get invested. I can see people either loving or hating the style and editing of the action sequences for the same reasons, it's handheld and shakes a bit, the camera is doing barrel rolls and tricks, the editing could be considered disjointed and confusing, and even that the style obscures the substance. However! I saw an evolution of the editing where as the movie goes on the fighting scenes get cleaner, more focused, and frankly artsy at periods. The movie has shining moments of beauty even in the midst of fairly brutal fights. It's a visually striking film when it wants to be and I appreciate that immensely. It's far beyond what you would expect from a revenge film but it's highly entertaining in it's own right, and truthfully elevated my spirits because well that's the power of cinema. You can watch a movie and it completely changes your mood for gladness or sadness. All I'll say is, it is well worth your time and money to see regardless of in theaters or at home. A golden four stars, 9/10! Maybe even has potential for top 10 of the year, who knows. Until next time enjoy the weekend, have some fun, be safe and be well, I'll catch you later on.

Chappie

It's high time we did this one.

Chappie is an incredible movie. It takes such a familiar concept of human like artificial Intelligence implanted in a robot body and makes it something new and amazing. So a programmer played by Dev Patel is working on a new AI that works like a human brain, and tests it on a damaged police robot, he gets roped in with this gang of criminals and they force him to use the police robot for their gain. The robot comes alive and starts experiencing new things, learning, and becoming the sentient being known as Chappie. That's the basics, but the movie does a lot with the concept. Chappie is a child, still learning about himself and the world he lives in which I don't think I have ever seen before. With most movies like this, the AI in the robots is above human intelligence and devoid of emotion. Chappie is the exact opposite, obtaining true consciense with a mind and soul like a human. It's not like Ghost In The Shell where the boundaries of human and machine are blurred, and the film asks what is it to be human, it's more about Chappie's life and the decisions that got him to where he is at the end of the movie. It's not a intellectual film, you're not supposed to answer questions but feel emotions. This is an emotional movie, you feel great compassion and want the best for Chappie, you feel love and passion and such enthusiasm from his creator and his adopted mother played to absolute sheer perfection by Yolandi Visser who brings well, heart and soul to Chappie, it's a character driven movie and brings so much to it. Performances across the board are all excellent, emotional attachment is strong throughout, just to see the few days of life in this one robot is something special and the film was just so dang good. I mean guys really, get out there and watch this movie. I can say without falter or doubt that not only is Chappie one of the best movies I have seen in awhile, but it is also one of the best movies ever made.