In the bible, Michael is the archangel of God, the loyal general of God’s armies who is the soldier to battle Satan and help hurl Satan and his followers in to the underworld. Michael is also the archangel to have been prophesized to defeat the Anti-Christ. Often depicted with a flaming sword, Michael is swift and loyal to his holy creator. As such he is one of my favorite characters of the bible. Michael in “Legion” is a gun toting, one-liner chucking, tattoo donning mother who speaks in a grumble and slur that feels as if star Paul Bettany is attempting to restrain his English accent, and is trying to channel a Southern drawl. Here we see Michael as one part The Punisher, one part Mr. Blonde, and two parts T-800, who stumbles around stomping and commanding his human drones to fight back against the hordes of angels, and whispering poetic diatribes about his allegiance to God.
Dym (2007)
At the request of director Grzegorz Cisiecki, I cautiously entered in to his 2007 short film entitled “Dym,” and hoped to see what would be the seeds of a great director in the making. While in the end “Dym” leans toward being a demo reel for work in the states, “Dym” is also a striking short film delving in to the psychosexual madness our main character endures when experiencing a turbulent romance with his girlfriend.
Yogi Bear's All-Star Comedy Christmas Caper (1982) (DVD)
For unabashed fans of Hanna Barbera, “Yogi Bear’s All-Star Comedy Christmas Caper” is a fun reunion of their heavyweights who band together to help a little girl find her father, and her father regain his love for his daughter. Whether it makes sense or not, this animated special is a short but sweet adventure where Yogi and Boo boo happen in to an accidental journey for good.
Year 4: Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire Ultimate Edition (DVD)
While Mike Newell did in theory retain much of the mood and dread set by Alfonso Cuaron who injected his own individual flavor in to “Prisoner of Azkaban,” the fourth installment of the film series entitled “The Goblet of Fire” is no more entertaining than the aforementioned title. It’s even worse than the third one primarily because this series progresses more and more in to formulaic dribble and less in to adventurous and original fantasy doldrums that could stimulate the audience.
Director Newell’s installment is absolutely gorgeous to watch, but in the realm of story and characterization it brings very little to the table. Even with Ralph Fienne’s magnificent portrayal of the monstrous Lord Voldemort among the finale. The story this time delves in to Harry Potter’s dark side, and his capability to submerge himself to the dark side and become a pawn for Voldemort in the end.
Year 3: Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban Ultimate Edition (DVD)
For folks currently switching over to Blu-Ray this Christmas, there is also the option for traditional DVD releases, and this year available for all of the Potter fans is the Year 3 Ultimate Edition of Alfonso Cuaron’s “Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban” one of the few very entertaining installments of the Harry Potter series that has a truly dark and grim tone to it appealing toward adults and children alike.
This is one of the few films of the series that convinces me Harry Potter is not just for six year olds with a library card, and Cuaron lends a distinction that makes his version of the book much more bleak and atmospheric with a horror film sensibility and grit he brought over from “Children of Men.” Granted, I’m not a fan of the Harry Potter franchise in spite of my trying in the early days of the first book. I can still fondly recall reading the first book and midway through the text, I had to put it down and try to stay awake.
The Kids Are All Right (2010)
It’s very rare in pop culture today, where you can watch a film that is a drama and comedy, composed primarily out of performances with expressions and idiosyncrasies rather than endless diatribes and emotional outbursts drowning us in dialogue. With “The Kids are All Right,” the reactions and undertones of sadness are there within every single character. And it’s most important to ignore what they’re saying, and pay close attention to what they aren’t saying. Lisa Cholodenko’s dramedy about the modern family, and the plight of the odd structure of said family is a sad and typically miserable film about worshipping the wrong people, and reaching for a goal that is unobtainable. Every individual in this piece are looking for something to fulfill their lives, and sadly they will have the most difficult time looking for it.
Disney’s A Christmas Carol (2009)
It’s rather disheartening how a film that is filled with such a visual epic scope can in the end feel so cold and lifeless. Even with the title now being “Disney’s A Christmas Carol” with Charles Dickens (you know, the author of the actual story?) craftily omitted from the publicity campaign. Robert Zemeckis’ insistence on delivering some of the more stone cold animated films, that continue to attempt to convince us that it’s so much more than a simple demo reel continues with “A Christmas Carol.” It’s yet another spin on Charles Dickens tales of Christmas and redemption through the lens of motion capture computer animation. And much like the method of motion capture, it tries to be about as humanistic and moving as possible, but never can capture the subtle quirks and nuances of the human face and their emotions.