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Another dimension

Midnight Special

Writer-director Jeff Nichols (Take Shelter, Mud) has named his latest film, about a boy with special powers running from a Texas cult, Midnight Special. To me, the title alone is a stroke of genius. Creedence Clearwater Revival’s cover of “Midnight Special” was featured in Twilight Zone: The Movie back in 1983. Whenever I hear that song, or even see the title, I'm reminded of that song and movie, both of which hold a special place in my heart. I walked into Midnight Special in an ’80s sort of mood. Whether or not Nichols named his film with Twilight Zone in mind doesn’t really matter. The title had me thinking of Dan Aykroyd attacking Albert Brooks in a parked car at night on a country road, as he so memorably did in that film. The movie itself feels like a product of the late ’70s and early ’80s, a time when the likes of Spielberg and Scorsese were going full throttle and turning out some of their best stuff. It also works like a really cool episode of The Twilight Zone. Other filmmakers, like J.J. Abrams with his muddled Super 8, have tried to evoke a Spielberg vibe and wound up ripping him off. Nichols has made a film that can stand proudly alongside the best of Spielberg. It’s an interesting homage while also coming off as smart and original. It’s also a very entertaining journey. Michael Shannon, who has appeared in all of Nichols’ films, plays Roy, father to young Alton (Jaeden Lieberher), a mysterious boy who must wear goggles all of the time due to fits where his eyes shoot out blinding light. He has the power to down satellites, to channel radio broadcasts, and to transmit military secrets. So, yeah, the government is after him, and the Texas cult he grew up within sees him as some sort of prophet.

Roy takes Alton away from the cult, led by the forever haggard Sam Shepard, races towards some undetermined location, because he knows his boy is important and that mystery meeting with something or other is important. Nichols cleverly keeps much of his movie shrouded in mystery, with some questions never getting clear-cut by Bob Grimm answers. Movies that spell everything out for you can be very boring. bgrimm@ The film has elements of Duel, E.T. and newsreview.com Close Encounters of the Third Kind on the Spielberg front, with the mystery and wonder 4 of the best Twilight Zones. It also has the look and feel of some of Clint Eastwood’s best offerings, the dramatic intensity of Scorsese films, and even the better aspects of last year’s poorly received Tomorrowland. And, yet, it feels very original. Shannon is typically strong as the worried yet emotionally closedoff father who doesn’t have all of the answers but will do everything he can to help his son. Joel Edgerton gives his best performance to date as Lucas (yep … a George Lucas homage), a former state trooper along for the ride. Kirsten Dunst plays Alton’s mysterious birth mother. There’s also Adam Driver as the sympathetic government guy (think Peter Coyote in E.T.) in full nerd mode, doing much to make us forget that sinister villain he played in that little indie film that came out last year. Nichols is, quite simply, one of the finest directors making movies today. If you haven’t seen Take Shelter or Mud, and consider yourself a film connoisseur, then get on it. This film is perhaps a notch below those two movies, but that’s not saying it isn’t an entertaining and satisfying experience. That’s just saying he’s made three great movies and this is perhaps the least great of them. OK, I think that made sense. I’ve read about some people saying Nichols botches his films in the third act. That’s a bunch of crap. The third act in his films is always exciting or mind blowing, and this one is no exception. Midnight Special is an example of a great director stretching his wings and hitting his marks impressively. It’s also the first of two Nichols movies (the other is Loving, also starring Edgerton) that will be released this year. That’s a movie year to be excited about. Ω

Buy me some Legos and nobody gets hurt.

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3Baskin The horror genre has been getting a nice boost these last couple of years. Well, here’s another one to bolster that argument, but it isn’t for the faint of heart. This one is for those original Hellraiser-loving, Dario Argentofollowing horror fans who want their scares as dismal, dirty and creepy as they can get. Turkish writer-director Can Evrenol goes for the total bloody freak-out and succeeds as a group of cops respond to a call, get in a strange car crash, and wind up going through the doorway to Hell after entering an abandoned building. While on their way to Hell, they are disemboweled, blinded, forced to do things with masked monsters, and generally not treated well. I can only recommend this movie to the most hardcore of horror fans. It’s as blood-soaked and nightmarish as these things get, and will screw with your mind and your sense of well-being. I have nothing but respect for a movie that can scare the crap out of me like this one did, but it’s probably going to be a while until I dare to watch it again. Damn you, Can Evrenol! (Available for rent on iTunes and Amazon.com during a limited theatrical release.)

1Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice This is definitive proof that director Zack Snyder should be banned from the DC universe. The man who gave us Sucker Punch has effectively knocked the wind out of two great comic book heroes. Affleck could be a fine Batman. Actually, he could be a great Batman. But, like George Clooney before him, he winds up looking quite ridiculous running around in a messy movie in which his character simply doesn’t fit. A nice effort by Affleck to portray a nuanced, older, somewhat weary Bruce Wayne. As for Henry Cavill’s Superman, I’m longing for those short-lived days of Brandon Routh as Kal-el. While it isn’t entirely his fault, Cavill’s Supes is officially a dud. A sequel to the dreary Man of Steel, also directed by Snyder, Batman v Superman is a soulless step in the wrong direction. Snyder, who made a great graphic novel movie with Watchmen, has just completely lost the ability to put together a cohesive, exciting movie. It’s sad that somebody can’t make an entertaining movie with two DC classic superheroes, but that’s exactly what Snyder has done. He’s completely failed the fanbase, and he needs to be stopped.

4Deadpool Ryan Reynolds scores big in this twisted film from first time director Tim Miller. The movie establishes its weirdness with scathing opening credits that poke fun at Reynolds’s stint as Green Lantern. It then becomes a consistently funny tragicomedy involving Wade, a mercenary who comes down with terminal cancer, dimming the lights on his future with girlfriend Vanessa (Morena Baccarin). He submits himself to an experiment that leaves him disfigured yet superhuman, bent on revenge against the criminal who made him this way. Reynolds finally gets a good movie to match his charms, and Deadpool gets the nasty film the character beckons for. The film gets an R-rating for many reasons, and there was no other way to make a Deadpool film. It needed to be depraved, and it is.

4Eye in the Sky A drone pilot (Aaron Paul) has a missile shot all lined up and is about to pull the trigger on a houseful of terrorists when a little girl parks herself within the blast zone to sell some bread. This is just one of the dilemmas brilliantly depicted in writer-director Gavin Hood’s tense thriller about drone warfare and the political ramifications of collateral damage. Helen Mirren is superb as Colonel Katherine Powell, determined to take out multiple targets on Great Britain’s terrorist list, but needing to check the legalities of all her strategies before she can make a single move. In his last live action screen appearance, Alan Rickman is terrific as Lt. General Frank Benson, drolly responding to the bureaucracy that’s keeping him from doing his job. Paul brings his best big screen acting yet to the role of Steve Watts, a drone commander torn between killing an innocent child or preventing potential scores from being killed in a terrorist bombing. Phoebe Fox gives a breakthrough performance as Carrie Gershon, drone cocommander. The film poses many questions and many dilemmas, and wisely doesn’t take sides. It presents you with the frustrating situations and the consequences, and the viewer is left to mull it all over. This is one of the better-acted films in the first third of 2016. 3 Hello, My Name is Doris Sally Field plays the title character, a 60-something office worker who gets a crush on John (Max Greenfield), a much younger co-worker. The two become friendly, and then Doris gets a little carried away into a fantasy world regarding him. Yes, she’s a bit of a stalker, but it’s Sally Field doing the stalking, so it winds up being kind of cute. Directed by Michael Showalter (The Baxter, Wet Hot American Summer), the film mixes goofy comedy with some of a darker variety. Field, who hasn’t had a chance to shine in a comedy in a long while, gives us a multi-dimensional character to go with the laughs. Greenfield is excellent as the object of Doris’ desire, and he actually has a palpable chemistry with Field. You never really know if something might happen between Doris and John, and even though Field is 30 years older, hey, it’s Sally Field. Showalter, who co-wrote the film with Laura Terruso, put together a nice supporting cast including Stephen Root and Tyne Daly. Showalter didn’t get his due with his sweet and funny feature directing debut, The Baxter. His movies show he can go beyond the realms of outrageous comedies and deliver material with a dramatic oomph—while still managing to be a bit silly.

2I Saw the Light It’s still a little early yet, but this is positioned to be one of the year’s biggest cinematic disappointments. The film is an ultimate downer because it contains a powerful central performance from Tom Hiddleston as country music legend Hank Williams. Hiddleston looks, and more importantly, sounds the part, performing live with a strong singing voice and stage persona. When the film focuses on live music and studio performances of Williams’ standards, it shines. It’s when the film examines his life between the songs that it’s a dull, unrewarding experience. Yes, anybody who knows a little bit about the man knows he died tragically young (29) of alcohol and drug-related complications, and that he had a messed-up love life. Come on, though, this is Hank Williams. It’s hard to accept his life was as dull and humorless as writer-director Marc Abraham’s film suggests. Yes, his end was tragic, but the guy must’ve had a sense of humor. Elizabeth Olsen does good work as Audrey Mae Sheppard, Williams’ wife when he got his big break. The same can’t be said for Maddie Hasson as Williams’ next wife, Billie Jean Jones. Her character feels tacked on. Abraham relies on some of your basic biopic no-nos to move the story along, including the old fake blackand-white newsreel interview gimmick. That’s when you put an actor in a fake interview setting and make it look like a newsreel to give the film authenticity. It’s just proof that the writer was stuck and needed to cheat his way out of self-induced plot ditches. Songs like “Lovesick Blues,” “Honky Tonkin’” and other Williams classics provide interesting interludes, but I Saw the Light will be remembered more for its dullness than its musical numbers.

3The Invitation Dinner parties tend to suck, don’t they? You bring a stupid bottle of wine nobody will like. You have no small talk for others gathering at the table other than the weather and your stinky feet problem. Your hosts may or may not be trying to kill you. Will (Logan Marshall-Green) is visiting his ex-wife, Gina (Michelle Krusiec), for a dinner party. Gina has been away for some time, and she’s gotten all smiley in the wake of a tragedy she and Will suffered. Her new boyfriend, David (Michiel Huisman), is a bit of a weirdo, all happy and perhaps a bit too pleasant. In contrast to his pleasant demeanor, he shows the party a video of a woman, surrounded by members of some cult, dying by choice. That puts a strange damper on the party, but they all eventually make it to the dinner table, where things get even weirder. Director Karyn Kusama (Jennifer’s Body, Girlfight) does nice work within the scary cult genre, getting good performances from Marshall-Green and John Caroll Lynch as a friend with a sketchy past. There’s a good mystery at play here, with a final act that delivers on the build up. It’s a good ensemble cast in service of a decent script and effective director. Marshall-Green, best known for a supporting role in Prometheus and a couple of TV shows, should find himself getting some decent future work after this one. He’s got some major chops. (Available for rent or download on iTunes, Amazon.com and On Demand during limited theatrical release.)

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