Inception

There is a reason I used this specific picture for Inception. In a movie where pictures from any scene would be impressive, this is the scene that I couldn't get out of my head, and I wasn't the only one. Most conversations I've had about the movie went something like this:

"Have you seen Inception?"
"Yeah! Have you?"
"Yes! Oh my God the hallway scene?"
"I know!"

I apologize in advance, but this will be a total fanboy review. I love this movie. I love this cast. I love this director.

Why do I love the movie? Thank you for asking conveniently placed ghost interviewer. When people at my store ask me what they should rent, I usually follow with a barrage of questions for them, using ninja skills to actually cause them to answer their own question. One question I ask is "are you in the mood for a popcorn movie or something more indie?" Which really means "do you want to think or not?" Inception is one of the rare cases that combines independent cinema thoughts with big budget effects. It's happened a few times before too, but it's definitely not the safe formula that hollywood has been guilty of falling back on over the last few years. I've heard Inception compared to heist films a lot, which is fair. However, there's so much more to be seen here warranting multiple views, whereas with something like Dog Day Afternoon (which is a great movie), after you've seen it once there's not a whole lot to be gained by rewatching.

My reasons for loving the cast should be obvious. Leonardo DiCaprio has proven that he isn't in the movie industry to make safe, boring films. He has pushed himself as an actor to take challenging roles again and again, and I wouldn't be surprised to see him ranking with Daniel Day Lewis at some point. I have a ridiculous crush on Ellen Page which forces me to say that everything she does is perfect. Joseph Gordon Lovitt is the best dressed and clever-tongued young actor out there. Cillian Murphy. I'm not going to add anything to his name, because his name is all that needs to be said. I was happy during every scene, because there was always a great actor on screen doing something awesome. That sounds like an immature comment, but that's literally how I felt during the whole movie.

As far as Chris Nolan goes, if you haven't yet gone through his filmography, it's high time you did so. He's the only man that could make a batman movie academy award worthy.

I've avoided any plot points because you either need to see it for yourself or more likely you already have. You know what this movies is. Go watch it.

Splice

In a week where the two biggest releases are remakes of movies from the 80's, Splice is a breath of fresh air.It also makes me realize how few good sci-fi movies have come out recently. This is a solid sci-fi piece with interesting subject matter and an unpredictable plot. There is quite a bit of character development too, but some of it seems to come completely out of left field almost to the point of drastically changing personality.

Splice is the story of Clive (Adrien Brody) and Elsa (Sarah Polley), two scientists who are experimenting with DNA splicing. After developing a protein, their investors tell them that they will be switching their focus to this protein and away from splicing. In a misguided effort to advance their study, they splice human DNA with animal DNA to make a new organism.

 As is the case with most scientific stories, a bit of realism is sacrificed in order to keep the entire audience up to speed on what's going on. One slightly laughable moment was when unsuccessful attempts at splicing were literally met with an error window on the computer...

I have enjoyed most of Adrien Brody's work, and again have no problem with him here. Nor did I have any problem with Sarah Polley's acting. The biggest flaw in the characters was the way they were written. At the beginning of the movie, both Clive and Elsa seem to be perfectly normal human beings, but as the story progresses, they make worse and worse decisions, casually breaking down and developing severe mental issues along the way. Some of these problems were necessary to move the plot in the direction they chose, but it would have been more believable had these issues existed from the beginning.

The movie builds suspense well and more than a few times I was anxiously leaning forward in anticipation of the coming event. The story moves along at a decent pace, and stays rooted in reality well enough to keep you interested. It also very subtly hints at the moral dilemma of playing God in the world of DNA and cloning. It's never forced upon the viewer which is a positive, but I do believe everyone will at some point decide how they feel about the possibilities the film presents. In a world where our knowledge and power are constantly expanding, it is not a stretch to imagine a situation like this could occur someday. I believe this part of the story is the strongest aspect of the movie.

Then something happened. The filmmakers decided they were done with their fairly realistic sci-fi drama and that the resolution needed to be amped up from the rest of the story. The film lost me at this point and I was disappointed with where it went, but it still didn't ruin the whole experience for me.

There's not much more to say without spoiling pieces of the story, suffice it to say that this is a solid movie that is better than most of what Hollywood is churning out these days. Sadly it's cheapened a bit by an unexpected genre change, but that would not keep me from recommending it for any sci-fi fans or people looking for an original story.

Karate Kid (2010)

While I am sad that Jackie Chan doesn't move around like he used to (ie First Strike, Rumble in the Bronx), I am glad that he is picking some roles that make sense for his aging persona. When I heard they were re-making Karate Kid with Will Smith's son, I sighed. When I heard that Jackie Chan would be playing the Miyagi role, I thought about it for a while and slowly built up a genuine desire to see it.

If you've seen the original Karate Kid, you'll find a familiar (if rushed) story. Dre (Jaden Smith) has recently moved to China (for reasons never explained) and starts having trouble with bullies. The local handyman (Chan) reluctantly takes him on as a student, and trains him to defend himself with kung fu. The story moves along at a very quick pace and while it's a fairly predictable story arc, Smith shines in his first real leading role.

Jackie and Jaden played very well together on screen. Chan has done a lot of kid friendly movies lately, but for the most part they have been cookie-cutter silly roles. This role brought a slightly darker side to the table, and I for one enjoyed it immensely. I bought the mentor/trainee relationship and found it to be the backbone of what was good about the movie.

Unfortunately, I did NOT buy the relationship between Smith and Taraji Henson (the mother). It felt like Henson was constantly fighting to make people take her seriously, and in doing so completely missed the mark. Her lines were mostly yelled out melodramatically to the point of being farcical. It actually made me believe Smith's character more because he simply out-acted her in every scene they shared.

One other thing that struck me was how intense the fight sequences were. The kids really threw their weight around, and though I'm sure a large part of it was savvy editing, the fights were tight and clean. I found myself wincing more than once or twice at the severe hits these kids were taking.

Overall, I enjoyed myself throughout the movie. As it is obviously targeting a family crowd, one can overlook it's shortcomings and minor-to-major plot holes, and have a good time. It may lack the crane kick, but it's still a pretty good time.