Adnerb the Movie Nerd

Movie reviews from a middle school teacher's perspective

John Wick: Chapter 3- Parabellum

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If you saw John Wick 1 and 2, what I am about to say will not come as a surprise: this movie is over two hours of killing.  The killing is not creative, is relentless, and rather boring.  Keanu Reeves reprises his role as John Wick, a kind of international assassin, who works for a shady and ambiguous group called The High Table.  He gets in trouble, is stripped of the group’s  protection and finds himself with  a $14,000,000 bounty on his head.  It seems there are potential bounty hunters everywhere and they all come after John Wick.  Little do these would-be assassins know; John Wick has plot armor.  No matter how many bullets are fired at him, they almost all miss! When he does get hit or stabbed, he stitches or patches it up, shrugs it off, and continues on unhindered.  Luckily for John Wick, he is such a sharpshooter he kills literally hundreds of people without missing a shot!  And he apparently took the advice of Tallahassee and Columbus from “Zombieland” to heart, as he double taps everyone – at a minimum!   Of course, he uses more than guns.  John is trained in martial arts and gets to show his expertise, especially against Zero ( Mark Dacasco) who is excited to get to fight, and hopefully kill, his hero!  Do not worry, John Wick prevails through all.  Ian McShane,  Laurence Fishburn and Halle Berry all lend a hand.  I found the whole thing bloody and silly.  I am sure John Wick has lots of fans, but I just can’t recommend this movie unless you plan on being an international assassin and are looking for a few tips.

Tolkein

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If you are a fan of J.R.R. Tolkein and his Lord of the Rings trilogy, not to mention The Hobbit, then I have just the movie for you. This movie takes the budding Oxford Don and author from his family’s return to Lancashire from South Africa after his father and mother’s deaths, through life in a boarding house and public school through just after the First World War where he fought in the devestating and horrific Battle of the Somme, serving as an infantry officer. Along the way, he joins a  group of four comrades, fast friends until the war breaks their “fellowship.”  Nicholas Hoult plays Tolkien as a young student and adult, while Harry Gilby is him as a child.  The story takes him through his meeting with the woman he’d eventually marry, after some trevails, and his acceptance into Oxford where he eventually joins the languages department.  Sprinkled throughout the basic story are snippets of his experiences in the Somme and of his enduring public school  friendships that might have been the basis for many parts of the  Rings books.  The thing that fans of these stories will appreciate are the many Easter Eggs sprinkled throughout, all alluding to the works that he would write later in life.  One example had to do with his batman (a servant soldier) in the front lines  who helped Tolkein when he had trench fever.  At one point of the story, this many even carries the ailing Tolkein over his shoulder.  His name?  Sam, of course.  This movie also details how Tolkein courted and married his wife, Edith ( Lilly Collins).  I found this part of the story sweet, and very relatable. However, if you are not a fan of Tolkein’s books, I am not sure you will enjoy this movie as much as you might.  The story telling is a bit disjointed and there really isn’t any action to speak of except some brutal and realistic scenes from the war.  I learned a lot about the life of Tolkein that I didn’t know, and after doing some research, I discovered that the movie does a good job of presenting his life as accurately as possible.  If you are a fan, I recommend this story, if you are not a fan, may I suggest you read “The Hobbit” and then see the movie. It will be better than you might think (it really isn’t bad at all, but the back story will be clearer), and you will  find out for yourself why he has been called by some the Father of Fantasy.

Long Shot

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The premise for this romcom sounds a little preposterous to say the least.  Charlize Theron plays a beautiful and very popular Secretary of State, Charlotte Field, for a president (Bob Odenkirk) who was elected because of his popularity on televison (sound familiar?)  Odenkirk’s character decides not to run for reelection, leaving the door wide open for her to run and become the first woman president.  Along comes Fred Flarsky, played by Seth Rogen.  He is a struggling journalist for a failing newspaper that has just been bought out by a Rupert Murdoch-esque sleaze.  He is considered something of a nerdy pest, but believes strongly in free and honest journalism, so he quits the paper rather than sell out. An old friend, Lance (O’Shea Jackson Jr)  tries to help him out and cheer him up. Fred resists until Lance tells him they will be going to an event where Boyz II Men are going to perform.  Charlotte is also going to be there, and It turns out the two were childhood friends, and Fred has had a crush on her since she babysat for him.  They meet at the event and reconnect after an embarrassing mishap (Fred ends up being an Internet sensation).  I am spoiling nothing by telling you that this is the most unlikely on screen pairing since Esmerelda and Quasimodo.  However, there is an unlikely, but likeable, chemistry between the two – and it is fun watching them and their compatriots on their political path.   Long Shot offers both romance and humor.  In a surprise part, look for Andy Serkis.  I won’t tell you which role this acting chameleon plays but see if you recognize him.  All in all, the movie demonstrates that the romantic comedy might not be dead after all.

Avengers: Endgame

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Bravo! Bravo! Bravo!  After more than ten years, the Marvel Universe has come to a satisfying, poignant, heartrending and surprisingly hopeful ending.  In the previous movie, Thanos used the Infinity Stones and an iconic finger snap to destroy 1/2 of the universe, including many of the Marvel characters we have met and grown fond of over the years, including Iron Man, the first hero featured in this series.  The remaining Avengers are living a hopeless and bleak future.  They are still mourning their lost colleagues and can not seem to get out of their sense of failure, and break the ennui that has settled like a fog over the Earth.  Iron Man is on the verge of dying in space, looking broken and emaciated.  A bright, bright light shines in on him… What is it?  I’m not going to say to give away too much – I am no spoiler, but it’s not hard to figure something’s gotta change.  Let’s just say that Ant Man returns and has a plan.  The action moves to the remaining Avengers with a new sense of purpose and on a mission to go back in time and recover the Infinity Stones, and perhaps, use them to bring back their fallen comrades.  We all know it can’t be that simple.  Through it all, we get to see all of our favorite heroes, some more than others, but at one time or another, they are all here!  My favorite character has got to be Thor, his role in the story is hilarious to say the least.  It is hard to say much more.  First of all, there’s just too much going on!  And second, as I said, I’m not going to spoil this one! Not everyone is going to be happy with the movie.  After all, it has been hyped for the last ten years.  As to the end credits- there is no reason to stay to the end as there is no new movie to promote.  Or is there?  There is no scene at the end but if you stay, you will hear a sound.  Is the sound (no spoilers, sorry) a homage to the beginning of the Avengers or a harbinger of what is to come?  Anyway, ignore the giant plot holes, perhaps bring a kleenex or two, and enjoy the three hour ride.

Shazam!

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I am always a little suspicious about a  movie that feels the need to add an exclamation point to its title.  That usually screams ‘we didn’t make a very good movie and we hope this exclamation mark will make you ignore the buzz and see it anyway.’  Well, I am  not exactly right, nor am I exactly wrong.  This is after all a DC Universe movie, and we all know they just aren’t as good (with few exceptions) as Marvel movies.  This one wasn’t bad though.  In fact, if you have kids, this is a decent super hero movie to get their nerdy juices flowing.  Shazam is an ancient wizard (Djimon Hounsou) who transfers his super powers to fourteen year old Billy Batson.  Unfortunately, it’s a desparation move, as he is dying, and just can’t find a better candidate.  Billy is nowhere prepared enough to fill a super hero role!  Equally unfortunate, Shazam doesn’t have time to tell Billy what kind of powers he has or even how to use them.  Billy pretty much accidentally discovers that whenever he says the word ‘Shazam,’ he turns into an adult ( Zachary Levi) , buff, version of himself, while still retaining his teen age mindset.  Billy’s foster brother, Freddie, becomes his enthusiastic sidekick.  A lot of the heart and humor has to do with Shazam trying to figure out his powers – whether he is bullet proof (he is) or has invisibility (he doesn’t) and so on. Of course, there is an evil villian (Mark  Strong),  controlled by the evil spirits of the Seven Deadly Sins, out to destroy the world and only Shazam can stop him.  Compared to some of the other super hero movies (most notably Hell Boy), the violence is comparartively tame.  There is also a strong message about family, and another that will resonate with many kids.  Billy and many of his friends are the victims of bullies.  Even the main villan was bullied as a child.  The positive message is a little obvious at the end, but who cares?  All in all this is a sweet super hero movie that you can take your whole family to see.