Under the Skin

Under the Skin - Alien

Sometimes I simply find it difficult to preface a film. So without further ado I'll jump right into it. "Under the Skin" is one of those films that defies preconceptions and to be honest with you, just might be one of those films that will surprise many, if said many are willing to give it a chance and really try to understand an alien concept; a woman who is willing to sleep with a man from Scotland.....(I kid, I kid).

"Skin" is the story of a mysterious woman, played seductively and as sultry as ever by Scarlett Johansson. She drives a van, lures men into said van, and leads them to their doom. She is followed by a duo of mysterious motorcyclists who seem to clean up whatever mess she leaves behind. Things start to spin a little out of control after one of her encounters has her letting loose one of her quarries and going on the run. This is where they say, "the plot thickens."

To go any further would be to do a disservice to the rest of the film, and going cold into "Skin" is one of the best things that you could do for this film. Director Jonathan Glazer, best known for "Sexy Beast" combines the best of art house cinema with trippy effects to create an engrossing, thinking-persons, science fiction weird-fest. What also stands out is the excellent score by Mica Levy, which plays like combination of Radiohead, Aphex Twin, and Wendy Carlos.

What I think has been missing from sci-fi flicks for a while is the notion that a setting needs to actually be alien, or cosmic, in order to make it a real sci-fi film. What I think is the most underrated aspect of "Skin" is the fact that the film takes place in Scotland. Let's be honest, how much do we all really know about that land of Scotland outside of "Highlander" and Sean Connery. The landscapes and dialect almost become a character in and of itself and add a wrinkle to the story you wouldn't expect.

Now the elephant in the room; the performance of Johansson, and I'm not just talking about her acting ability. One of the things that got a lot of attention leading up to the release of this film was the fact that Johannson shed all of her clothes for the role. While it's nothing new for well-known actresses to ditch the clothes and show the goods, it's a tad more newsworthy considering we are talking about an actress known for playing Black Widow in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. However, her disrobing shouldn't take away from her simple, yet effective performance. Most of her acting isn't done through dialogue, but rather her movements and body language, and I might go as far as saying this is her best performance to date.

Another misconception is that "Skin" is simply a "Species" rip-off with stronger feminist undertones. Yes, on paper the fact that you have a mysterious women seeking men out and later dispatching them is pretty "Species"-like, but the comparisons can stop there. "Skin" features a very strong female character whose intentions aren't truly discovered until close to the start of the third act, and even at that point we see that character's intentions shift after a chance encounter with a specific character she picks up and is ready to dispatch. However, while I do enjoy the power that Johansson wields over her quarry, the third act flips the script and changes who may or may not be in control. I know some of this sounds cryptic, and that is the point. My intention is to entice you to watch a film that is certainly worthy of your attention and is an interesting take on male/female relations and interactions.

So, with that being said; should you see "Under the Skin?" See above please, of course you should. It's one of the most original sci-fi films in quite a while, with a daring performance by Scarlett Johansson and some of the most "alien" cinematography of 2014. Sure we've gone to the far-reaches of the Marvel Universe, Earth under the rule of talking Apes, and even traveled back into Biblical-times on an ark, but the way Glazer created a practically alien world out of something that exists on Earth hasn't been done since Peter Jackson created Middle-Earth with the help of New Zealand.

Fun Fact: In 1979, Robert Taylor claimed to have been nearly abducted by aliens in Dechmont Law in Livington, West Lothian, Scotland in what has been called the Dechmont Law Encounter.

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Simplistic Reviews Presents: Cinema and Suds, A Film Quadruple-header and Mamma Mia! Pizza Beer

When I think of pizza I automatically think of beer.  Nothing goes better with a slice of pepperoni and mushroom than an ice cold beer.  We also know that beer goes with movies, but what happens when you combine pizza, beer, and movies?  Episode 2 of Cinema and Suds happens.

What I'm sure started out as a joke, has become a reality for beer and pizza lovers; PIZZA BEER!  Yes, pizza beer, folks.  A beer that tastes and smells like an actual pizza.  You might be thinking; were these people stoned when they came up with the concept to combine pizza and beer into one convenient 16 oz. bottle.  Probably, but you know what else goes great with pizza and beer.....I'll leave that up to you of course.

So, you got your Mamma Mia! Pizza Beer in your glass (hopefully a wine glass since this is such a classy beer) now it's time to pick a film.  You could go the safe route and pick "The Godfather" or "Goodfellas" but where's the fun in that?  You've got a damn Pizza Beer in your hand!  Be adventurous, or since you're already pizza drunk (you might need a few of these since the ABV only clocks in at 4.7%) and don't care what you're watching, why not pop in one of these classics, and I have four of them for you today.

Why not start the night with "Date Night" starring Tina Fey and Steve Carell.  Continue on with "Superbad" followed up by "Spaceballs."  And why not finish up the night with "The Thing" considering the fact that by this time you'll be talking to Mamma Mia! Pizza Beer asking, "What is this thing?" Or, "How and why did they make this thing?"

Enjoy the video companion to this review, and check back every week for another edition of Cinema and Suds.

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Elysium (Matt's Take)

Elysium - Preaching

PREACHING

As the Summer movie season winds down, we start to enter this zone of thoughtful Summer fare where the lines are blurred between balls-to-the-wall action and films with a message.  When Fall movies begin to roll out in the next month or so we'll start to see legit Oscar contenders and not as many giant-robots-punching each-other-in-the-face films.  It's the natural order of things.  This brings me to "Elysium" a solid, yet heavy-handed, sci-fi epic from "District 9" director, Neill Blomkamp.

"Elysium" is the story of Max Da Costa (Matt Damon) a former car thief who now works for Armadyne, an infrastructure/munitions manufacturer for the aforementioned city in space.  An accident at Armadyne forces Max to seek the help of local hacker and gangster, Spider, who offers him a way up to Elysium if he puts on a metal exoskeleton that resembles what Mickey Rourke was wearing in "Iron Man 2."  Political intrigue, exotic sci-fi weapons, and weird accents are the highlights of "Elysium" which is a little ham-handed with the way in which it deals with class issues and immigration, but at least one movie this year will call out the elephant in the room we are all dealing with as a global society these days.

Coming from a middle class family and living a middle class life, I know the class gap is widening even as I write this sentence and who knows, one day there very well might a space station where all the rich One Percenters live, while the Earth degenerates into a cesspool of crime and poverty, hey, have you seen Detroit lately?

The one problem 'Elysium" definitely DOESN'T have is how it looks.  This broken vision of Los Angeles looks beautiful, on par with what Alfonso Cuaron did with London in "Children of Men." The world looks lived in and is populated with actual people, not CG fill-ins.  The fact that Blomkamp decides to shoot scenes in actual trash heaps and squalor shows his dedication to his world and how he intends on making it look. You feel gritty and grimy on your time on Earth, but funny enough, that grim and grit carries over when you visit the world of Elysium.  Despite it's pristine surface, there is a rotten underbelly to the wealthy off-planet with it's ID-scarred citizens and the use of primitive looking robot helpers offering cocktails and Hors d'oeuvres.  There is something off-putting about Elysium, but at the same time you have to ask yourself; would you prefer Elysium to Earth?  I think most of us would sympathize with the citizens of Elysium, who seem to be under attack a lot, even though these people were likely the cause of the Earth's plight in the first place.

The acting is solid in "Elysium" with Matt Damon leading the way.  But the real revelation is Sharlto Copley, who plays Kruger, a sleeper agent for Elysium's Secretary of Defense, played by Jodie Foster.  Copley plays a villain with deranged glee, almost of the level of Heath Ledger's Joker in "The Dark Knight."  Kruger is built up as a psychopath, which fits the bill nicely based on his enjoyment in his job, namely killing immigrants without a second thought.  But there is a certain mystery and sadness behind his eyes.  Was he a psychopath before he was made a sleeper agent or did years of death and Med-Pod treatments warp his mind into what we see on screen.  I'd love to see a prequel with just Kruger.


Speaking of Med-Pods, this brings me to another important aspect of the film; healthcare.  In the time of "Obamacare" and free healthcare for all citizens, at what cost could free healthcare mean for us as a society.  Yes, we all love free, but when government is in charge of what we put into our bodies just because it's free, is it plausible to believe that something could go bad.  Most of the citizens of Elysium seem to be in a haze, almost dead from the outside, as they live their carefree and safe lives.  Could too much exposure to medicine and these "Med-Pods" cause some long-term damage, and psychosis?  Take Kruger as an example.  In his line of work I'm sure he's met plenty of bullets, knives, lasers, and grenades where he's had to make some pit stops into a Med-Pod.  The "free" healthcare could have some side effects, couldn't it?

This is just me reading in-between the lines, and who knows, this could just be be preaching at this point as well, but Blomkamp has said, quote, "No, no, no.  This isn't science fiction.  This is today.  This is now."  Now who's preaching.

Bottom line, "Elysium" is a step in the right direction for "intelligent sci-fi," but with films being a medium for escape, especially during the Summer time, it's odd to see such a preachy film in August.  However, Blomkamp raises the question(s) as to what should we need to do in order to stop this potential future only 140 years away.  Are we doomed to live on Earth while the most wealthy skip town and leave us the scraps?  If Blomkamp is the minister to this sermon, we should listen up, but still keep an open mind and hope that there is still some humanity left in our future.

Fun Fact:  "Elysium" marks TriStar Picture's return to big budget pictures, their first since 1998's "The Mask of Zorro" who's budget was $95 Million, compared to $115 Million for "Elysium."

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Elysium (DJ's Take)

ALLEGORICAL

Neill Blomkamp tops the list of my five favorite great directors of the future.  (Duncan Jones, Rian Johnson, Matt Reeves, and Josh Trank are the others)  His first film out of the box, District 9, is probably the most original, groundbreaking, sci-fi action film we've seen for two decades.  Though, that film's faux documentary style allowed Blomkamp some leeway to radically tell a story.  A style that worked like gangbusters.  However, I hoped and knew that Blomkamp wouldn't want to be pigeonholed to that type of filmmaking.  The question was how well could he tell a story in the more traditional fashion.  His sophomore effort Elysium proves that Blomkamp can be a multifaceted director.  However, he might need a bit more subtlety as a writer.  Because for all Elysium's pulse pounding action and jaw dropping visuals, its message seems to clumsily get in the way.

The concept is great.  The rich and affluent people of earth depart for a super advanced space station called Elysium.  There, food shortages, crime, and diseases are nonexistent.  A small group of earth rebels, led by a recently dying Matt Damon, fight to get up to Elysium before his time runs out.  An ALLEGORY that is clear enough to understand even for the normally oblivious.  However, Elysium's flaw is not allowing the audience to absorb the "We Are The 99%" ALLEGORY on its premise alone.  The film seems to beat you over the head with it over and over again.  So much so, the last three minutes become a montaged commercial for financial equality.  Now, I know what you're thinking.  District 9 is also based on the huge ALLEGORICAL message of racial inequality and South African apartheid.  However, I believe District 9's documentary style and alien creatures mask that film's message a bit smoother than Elysium.  Elysium suffers from not being able to sugarcoat what it wants to say.  Thus, distracting from and sadly short-changing all the things great about it.  And trust me, there is a lot of great here.   The world building is strong.  The acting is solid.  And the action is tremendously outstanding.

It always floors me how Blomkamp seems to make every action scene he does original, gritty and exciting.  No one does a clusterf%*k action scene like Neill Blomkamp.  NO!  NO!  Not Michael Bay.  Bay's action direction, admittedly one of the few things he does well, is hyper-stylized.  Blomkamp's action direction feels out of control.  Out of control in a good way.  You feel exhausted after each crazy entanglement Blomkamp puts you through.  Did you forget that mech suit battle in District 9?  His fights are sloppy, unpredictable, harrowing and great.  Elysium is no different in this regard.  The fighting style of the exosuits, the spaceship crashes, the corridor battles, the desert plain assaults.  They are all amazing.  Blomkamp also flexes his muscles again in the futuristic tech department.  He seems to always know how to introduce and use unique weapons and technologies just enough so we buy them as an audience, but not get bored of them.  Sanctimonious self indulgent statement here but...THEY DIDN'T WANT THIS GUY TO DO HALO!!!  DAMN IT!!!  Sorry.  It always bothers me.

As stated before, the performances are solid.  Matt Damon, while not breaking any new ground here, is still his usual charismatic self.  Jodie Foster playing a baddie always seems to vibe with me.  Though, her accent is a tad inconsistent.  A joyfully over the top performance by actor Wagner Moura as Spider also entertains.  However, there is one actor that steals EVERY SINGLE scene he is in.  One performance that people will talk about when they talk about Elysium.  And that is Sharlto Copley.  I was partially avoiding any spoilery trailers leading up to this film's release.   This led to my surprise when I saw Copley was in Elysium as much as he is.  He's Blomkamp's boy, so it makes all the sense in the world.  However, he isn't really promoted as much as he should be.  The guy completely owns this film.  After his role as the psychotic Kruger and his apparently terrific performance in Spike Lee's Old Boy, Copley has got to be a star on the rise.

Elysium is another strong sci-fi follow-up from Neill Blomkamp.  Its only sin is a slight difficulty to get out of the way of its own ALLEGORICAL message.  If you aren't prone to eye rolling from preachiness or a registered Republican, you'll enjoy the hell out of it.  Even if you are, you'll still be entertained.  Suit up...be careful of hand grenades to the face...watch it...then tell me I'm wrong.

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London Calling: Children of Men

Children of Men - Captivating

Lately in film, especially futuristic sci-fi fare, the preferred city of devastation is London.  It used to be that Godzilla would stomp Japan into oblivion, but of course we all know that giant lizards bred out of nuclear irresponsibility is completely far-fetched, right?  But putting fantasy away, London has been a hub the past decade or so for apocalyptic visions of the future.  From Rage viruses to an infertility pandemic, I'm not sure "Keep Calm and Carry On" would be enough for even London's strongest citizens to get behind.  This brings me to 2006's "Children of Men" one of the most captivating sci-fi films to be released in recent memory.

Here's the scoop; we visit London in the not too distant future where there hasn't been a reported new birth in nearly 18 years.  Just when you thought things couldn't get any worse, the youngest person in the world, lovingly named Baby Diego, has just been murdered.  With the world in mourning, we follow happy-go-lucky Theo, played by Clive Owen.  Theo is the type of guy that loves to get high with his hippy friend Jaspar and get kidnapped by a terrorist group called "The Fishes" led by his former activist wife, Julian, played by Julianne Moore.  The plot thickens when it's discovered that Theo is carrying some precious cargo, namely a baby in the belly of a young refugee girl named Kee.  With the government, crooked cops, and members of the terrorist group hot on his heels, Theo has no choice but to protect Kee and try and deliver her to The Human Project, a mysterious group researching why humanity become infertile so many years ago.

"Children" went largely unnoticed during its theatrical run, which is odd for how good this film really is.  The acting is spot on, the setting couldn't feel more real, and the message is relatively universal.  Sure, there are some preachy moments, and even some of the imagery and names are obvious, case in point, the young girl Kee, (even though it's technically pronounced "chi") who just might be the "key" to civilization's survival.  But those are minor quibbles.

Directed by Alfonso Cuaron, who some might know for "Y Tu Mama Tambien" or to an even wider audience as the director the best Harry Potter film installment "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban."  Some might disagree with that assessment of the "Harry Potter" franchise, but it was the moment that the series went from light-hearted and childish to dark, brooding, and serious.

Cuaron lends that trademark style to "Children" and creates a dystopian London where all hope seems to be lost, refugees are treated like Jews during World War II, and ethnic tensions are slowly coming to a head.  With all of that being said, Cuaron is still able to capture small glimmers of hope in a hopeless world, and some humanity in some of the more monstrous characters.  But the highlights of the film revolve around the long take action sequences which last upwards of 6 minutes.  Even though it has been debunked that these scenes are not one long take, the fact remains that these scenes highlight the film and create the most memorable moments in "Children."

Despite the fact "Children" was critically praised, the fact it didn't bank more at the box office was a crime in and of itself.  It's also a movie I'm always shocked people have never seen; at that moment I slap them in the face, hand them the DVD, and bid them Godspeed.

Fun Fact:  In the Bexhill block scene, Theo can be seen wearing a London 2012 Olympics fleece jacket.

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They Live

They Live: Brilliant

There will and always be a personal favorite list that any movie viewer has. A list that if you ever crashed landed on a desert island, which films who you like to have?

Today I share one of mine, They Live.

They Live is a fav of mine that always gets played over and over. I found this film years ago on TV one night. Back when VHS recorders where the shit. The station played a trailer for the film before they played it and it caught my eye. I jumped over to the remote and pressed record! I still own that copy, even though it is worn out it still gives it a special feeling effect DVD's and Blu-rays can't give you.

This film might not be a classic to everyone. It really only appels to a small group of people, in fact I find it hard to find people I know that have seen it. But to me this film is a classic. It gives you 93 minutes of pure joy.

I love this film! I even drove down just to see Roddy Piper when a Horror convention came to town. It was him at a desk next to Robert Englund and a few others. No one was at Piper's desk, so I went up to him. Now I've met a few high profile people in my time but Roddy Piper was the best! Nicest guy I ever met (well expect for this guy). He was so happy, we talked and talked. He gave me a  autograph, They Live sunglasses with a piece of gum (if you watch this film you will know why) and asked me,  thats right ASKED ME to take a photo with him! One of the best moments of my life, thank you Roddy for that and the film. I just hope I get to met him again, possibly get to work with him on a film?...man that would be awesome!

I adore this film. Even more then the first time I saw it. When I first saw it the next day I called all my friends up to come over and watch it. It's fun, different, a ton of action, thought provoking and entertaining. I recently watched a new high def transfer (which looks amazing and comes out this November on bluray). When I watched it the other day, I found it to touch on the world we now live in. It's odd how close we are to this film now, with the whole obey thing. Sure it's a bit goofy but a cult classic like this still lives up better then films of today.

Whats the film about?
They Live is about a drifter who discovers a pair of sunglasses the allow him to see that there are aliens living in our world. In fact they have taken over the Earth. They run our lives with TV and Billboards everyday. The film stars Roddy Piper, Keith David and Meg Foster. It's directed by John Carpenter based on the short story Eight O'clock in the Morning by Ray Nelson.

Quick notes: Two actors from Back to the Future are in this film.
Longest fight scene...O and...

I have come here to chew bubblegum and kick ass... and I'm all out of bubblegum.

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