Ed's Review Dot Com

Fairview Entertainment, Moving Picture Company (MPC), Walt Disney Pictures,

Bill Murray, Ben Kingsley, Idris Elba, Lupita Nyong’o, Scarlett Johansson, Giancarlo Esposito, Christopher Walken, Neel Sethi

Disney brings us the live action Jungle Book based on their animated film based on Rudyard Kipling’s books. Mowgli (Neel Sethi) is raised by a pack of wolves until he gains the unwanted attention of Shere Kahn, the fiercest Lion in the Jungle. The panther Bagheera who found him, tries to take him back to the man village, but the journey is plagued with danger and the eventual meeting with Shere Kahn.

This live action version of the classic Disney film is by far the most successful of the animated to live films that Disney has been trying lately. Mostly I suspect this is due to the quality of the writing and the original stories. There are many surprises in this film and many things that have led to it’s huge success. First is Jon Favreau who is an excellent director who has outdone himself here. Second is the intense world developed by the animators of this stunning look at the jungle created on Disney’s lot in Burbank. The lighting, shadow, and details down to every hair is absolutely breathtaking. Then there’s the tribute to the original, while still making this a grown up totally different experience for those like me who have seen the original over and over again. The characters are mostly the same, and the major story points are pretty similar, but it juts off at a couple places that really makes this experience new. Then there’s the music. How can we beat Louis Prima’s “I Wanna Be Like You” or Phil Harris’ “Bear Necessities”. Well they did use much of the same music, though not all, but in a completely new and modern style that will let you remember the tune and the gist of the story, but with many new words and different sounds that make it feel like a new song in many ways. Unlike the cartoon, the music isn’t the main feature, but a background reminder of what you’re watching in a whole new light. Then there is the really exciting and fun voices. Bill Murray as Baloo and Christopher Walken as King Louie is fabulous. But all the voice talent is top notch, that’s for sure. Finally, the performance of Neel Sethi as Mowgli. There are whole clips on YouTube about how he was selected, and this kid is as unexpected as the stars of Slumdog Millionaire when it arrived on the scene. All the buzz is about this fellow, and he was unbelievably good. This is a must see film, so don’t miss out. Catch this one right away while it’s still in the theater on the BIG screen….the BIGGER the BETTER!!

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Chernin Entertainment, Scott Free Productions, Babieka,

Christian Bale, Aaron Paul, Joel Edgerton, Sigourney Weaver, Ben Kingsley

The story of the life of Moses (Christian Bale) from his time as a young man in Egyptian royalty through his life exiled into the wilderness, to his triumphant march of the Israelite slaves out of bondage in Egypt and across the Red Sea on their way to Canaan. A controversial film, to say the least, but like other big budget films like Gladiator, Noah, 500, etc. this is a big budget full on visual delight. History? Perhaps not so much.

This certainly was not a badly done as Noah was. That was pretty horrible, really. But this also made some really strange choices as things went along. To call it “Exodus” gives the impression that it is going to be a remake of “The Ten Commands” from the Bible. But Ridley Scott made some really odd changes in the story that really didn’t need to be made. At first, I thought this was going to be a “void of Religion” scientific telling of “how it could have happened”. But it really didn’t turn out that way. It certainly played down the religious elements of the film. This is sacred Jewish history, but something that the Christians put a lot of faith in as well, as certainly Jesus was a descendant of these people. It’s belief that the Jews have to share. Even the Koran has this story in it as well. The look of this film in incredible. Made for 3-D, the sets and scenery are simply stunning. I must admit that it would have been much harder for Cecil B. DeMille to create what he did in the California Mojave Desert for Charleton Heston to march around in. There has to be comparisons between the two films. Though stunning for it’s time, the technology has brought so much more visual quality to the film today. Perhaps this is a problem, as the look is so absolutely stunning, that it seems they lost the power of one of the greatest stories ever. The movie runs over 2 1/2 hours, and it looks like it was chopped down quite a bit to make it that “short”. But at the same time, they really feel rushed through a lot of the very important parts, and spread out long scenes that seemed to have little purpose. I am not even going to chop down the religious elements of the movie, because that is personal belief, but some of the choices are mind boggling. The plagues are upon us quite suddenly, and portrayed with a great deal of clarity and reality, but the who purpose of who, what, why, and how, was largely just skipped over. Moses seems much more of a bystander to all of this, rather than the stunning leader and general the Heston portrayed. The burning bush where Moses talks to God is shown, but the bush has no purpose or real reason to even exist. God is a little British boy who is a bit of a brat, and only shows up when he feels like it, and gives Moses no real clue what to do. Likewise, Moses is wallowing in self doubt and mostly watching events unfold. Basically, I’m afraid this movie missed the mark because they simply forgot to pay attention to the storytelling because they were so enthralled by the special effects. This is a shame, as it could have been a real solid movie experience. You’re going to lose the religious fanatics immediately when you change anything from the Bible account, that’s to be expected. But they lost a great many of the rest of the public when the story just was so strange, and the casting rather haphazard, and the director was lost in the stars reveling over the technological miracles. They made a beautiful and stunning film with hollow storytelling.

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Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation, 21 Laps Entertainment, 1492 Pictures,

Ben Stiller, Rebel Wilson, Robin Williams, Own Wilson, Ricky Gervais, Ben Kingsley

Larry Daley (Ben Stiller) is back in the 3rd installment of Night at the Museum, and a new shipment has arrived at the museum. The tablet wakes them up at night too, and they all find themselves in great danger. But greater danger is just ahead as the tablet is becoming corroded and losing it’s power. When it’s gone, all the magic will end. Larry convinces his boss Dr. McFee (Ricky Gervais), who doesn’t believe in the magic, to let him take the tablet to London to the museum where an Egyptian pharoah (Ben Kingsley) knows the secret of the tablet and how to repair and recharge it. But with some stowaways on the trip, they get into a gigantic battle to save themselves and the tablet.

This is a fitting finale to the trilogy. In the end, I don’t see a way for them to turn out another one of these. But as sequels go this was worthy of the franchise. If you like the first two, then this one definitely is not going to disappoint you. But it is definitely not as good as the first one, if that matters. It sort of felt like maybe Ben Stiller is getting tired of these films and ready to put it all behind him. It’s also sad to see Robin Williams again after the tragedy that happened to him. Basically all the characters are back, and the mischief they get into is similar to the other two. The wrap up in the end it touching, and the characters are just what you’d expect. I really cannot comment on their acting skills since they’re the same characters played by the same people, so they are what they already are. The story could maybe have been a bit better written, but it’s probably good enough for what it is. I really enjoyed the entertainment this little trip down memory lane provided, and though I chose to wait for the DVD, now that it’s out, it’s worth spending some time to watch, especially as I said, if you enjoyed the first two.

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Raffaella Productions,

Julian Morris, Ben Kingsley, Jassa Ahluwalia, Jonjo O’Neill, Jake Curran, Tamzin Merchant

Young squire Gareth (Julian Morris) wants to be a knight, but he’s got to pay for the honor. He has no money, but when he sees a meteorite of gold falling from the sky on the “other” side of the wall, he sets off to find it. When his life is saved by dragon Drago (Ben Kingsley) their hearts are joined and if one dies, so does the other. Gareth sets out to defeat a wicked sorcerer and brings danger and trouble and a few friends back to the wall.

This is the 3rd film in this series, and believe it or not, I think I really liked this one much more than either of the first two. The first one was even voiced by Sean Connery, but the story seemed a lot better here, and the action and scenery was very good, and the actors really seemed to be giving it their all. This is a live action adventure and fantasy story that takes place back in the times of knights and dragons, naturally. The setting was perfect, and the action was fast and furious. This is a good family film. This one might be a bit scary for little kids, but certainly anyone teen-aged and older should enjoy this film. I think it was very well done, and I give it a good recommendation if you like fantasy and sorcery stories. Again, this may be the best of the series.

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Dreamfly Productions, Escape Pictures, Lavender Pictures,

Ben Kingsley, Kodi Smit-McPhee, James Le Gros, Alex Wolff, Katie Chang, Briana Marin, Stephen Kunken, Daniela Lavender, Ethan Cohn, Ira Hawkins, Adam Barrie, Andy Prosky, Michael Chen

David Portnoy (Kodi Smit-McPhee) is a teen who is hooked to the hobby of birding. His father Donald (James LeGros) is about to get remarried, which is really messing with David’s head when he suddenly sees a rare bird that is supposed to be extinct. After trying to verify the find, he and a bunch of friends head off on an epic road trip to find the bird again to prove his discovery on the eve of his father’s wedding, and he’s supposed to be the best man.

This is a rather interesting film about birding. It’s actually the second film I’ve watched on the subject recently, and that’s disturbing as birding is supposed to be a really boring hobby for nerds. Well, I guess David does pass as a nerd, but the movie really isn’t about birding. It’s a story about the pain a young man feels at the loss of his mother, and the added stress of seeing his Dad appear to forget her for his hot new young girlfriend. It’s about who his friends really are, and there’s a lot of self assessment in this film. Each of the characters has to look at themselves to see who they really are. Not a big blockbuster movie, this is a small independent type film, but not a bad one. It’s got a decent amount of heart, and the road trip really has it’s excitement as they chase this elusive goose. This was a relatively interesting film to watch and it’s not a bad story, and as a bonus, it’s got Ben Kingsley!

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