Movie Review: SKY CAPTAIN AND THE WORLD OF TOMORROW

SKY CAPTAIN AND THE WORLD OF TOMORROW

2004
PG

Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow is a stylized sci-fi action film directed by Kerry Conran. The film takes place in an alternate reality in 1939, which in true history would have placed the setting just before the onset of the second World War. When an army of metallic machines invades and attacks a section of downtown New York, a mysterious man referred to as "Sky Captain" (Jude Law) is summoned to protect the masses. He manages to scare the machines away but takes on another nuisance in their stead: plucky newspaper reporter Polly Perkins (Gwyneth Paltrow), a former lover who knows Sky Captain's true identity (his name's Joe, for those wondering). After Joe explains that he and his army-for-hire had encountered such menaces before, his secret base is attacked and his friend and resident weapons expert Dex (Giovanni Ribisi) is kidnapped. In an attempt to save his friend - as well as save the rest of the world - Joe takes Polly on a worldwide quest to find Dex and the source of these mysterious machines.

I guess I had some expectations going into this film - it currently holds a 72% approval rating on the online review aggregate ar.com - but maybe I should've read the fine print a little bit. Let's start with screenplay. There's really not much in terms of a great plot here, but I suppose it does enough to be serviceable. It should be noted that it's very easy to follow, but for this particular film, that facet works against it. This is the epitome of a "multitasking" movie, in that you can be working on any number of other things while you watch it, not giving it your full attention, and you'll still know exactly what's going on. Some people would find that rather appealing, but I personally don't like it when a movie can't hook me. In fact, that plays into my grading process, and I can tell you now that Sky Captain did not fare well in that particular regard.

The acting is also serviceable, but there's really nothing to stand and applaud. Law and Paltrow are good as our leads, and they play off each other well, but they're definitely not reaching either of their respective potential. Ribisi is good for a laugh here and there, but he's given much too little screen-time - I wanted more of his character, but I never got it. We do have some small appearances that should be worth mentioning: Angelina Jolie comes into to play Franky, another of Sky Captain's former flings; Michael Gambon appears as Polly's editor-in-chief; and the great Sir Laurence Olivier was resurrected through computer-generation and archive audio to create the film's central villain.

A tip of the hat should go to Edward Shearmur, who provided a rousing orchestral score for the film. Although it feels a little bloated at times, it works well for this film's particular purposes.

Overall, Sky Captain is all about style while lacking any real substance. A lot of money was thrown into the visual portion of the film, and I just wish they would've put a little more thought into the storyline and the characters. There's no real character arc for anyone in the film - okay, maybe a tiny bit for Sky Captain and Polly - and the story just wasn't compelling enough to capture my interest. A film without a decent hook is not going to fare well.

Movie Review Summary:

Grade: D+
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Addition to Awards

Movie Review: THE KING'S SPEECH

THE KING'S SPEECH

2010
R

You can watch the trailer here

Whenever I go into a film that's considered to be one of the year's best and a front-runner for the Oscar race, I always go into the theater trying to push all the hype out of my mind and view the film objectively. Sometimes, when a movie is as good as advertised, it's easy to do because you can just lose yourself in the movie. On occasion, you'll get a movie that doesn't live up to its hype, but fortunately for me, The King's Speech did not fit that particular situation.

The film, which was directed by Tom Hooper, opens on the Duke of York (Colin Firth), more affectionately known by his family as Bertie, as he attempts to give his first speech via wireless radio in 1925, and we learn that he has a terrible problem with stammering and stuttering. This problem causes him a deal of emotional anguish, leading his wife (Helena Bonham Carter) to seek professional help for him. After a series of failures, she finds Lionel Logue (Geoffrey Rush), a speech therapist with some unconventional methods. He begins to work with Bertie, and progress seems to be made. Meanwhile, the King of England (Michael Gambon) passes away, leaving the crown to Bertie's older brother (Guy Pearce), who eventually relinquishes the crown to Bertie in order to marry the woman he loves. Bertie takes the name King George VI and goes through the coronation process with the help of Lionel, who ultimately coaches him through his first wartime speech as England finds itself pulled into the start of World War II.

Although the screenplay is very good, I did have a few qualms that are probably more nitpicking than anything else. (By the way, you know a film is good when I have to nitpick to find problems with it). My first issue came early in the film where the time-frame seemingly jumped a number of years in a heartbeat, and I wasn't sure exactly when, or if, that had happened. It happens between Bertie's first and second visits to Logue, and I wasn't sure whether the time between visits had been a few hours, a few days, a few weeks or a few years. It bugged me for a few minutes, but I eventually picked up with the film. My biggest issue with The King's Speech, however, was the actual speech. Obviously, you can imagine where the film is headed the entire way through. Because a film like this is somewhat predictable, you need to deliver your finale as completely and convincingly as you can. However, I felt as though that final speech just came and went without really reflecting on the accomplishment of it all. It was supposed to be the summation of the entire movie, and at least for me, it just didn't have that final umph, if you know what I mean.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, I have absolutely no qualms with the acting in The King's Speech. Many have been saying that Firth will win the Oscar for his performance as King George VI, and to be honest, he probably will win it. He's absolutely fantastic, and he deserves the award. That doesn't mean I don't think there's anyone who deserves it more (here's looking at you, James Franco), but with how the Academy tends to vote, I'd be surprised to see Firth miss out for the second year in a row. Helena Bonham Carter is also very good, but a lot should be said about Geoffrey Rush who never ceases to amaze. He should give The Fighter's Christian Bale a good run for his money in the supporting actor race.

Please don't think that I thought The King's Speech wasn't any good just because I had some issues with the screenplay. It'll probably win an Oscar. I mean, it's already garnered seven Golden Globe nominations, and that leads the field. The movie got a rousing round of applause from the audience I watched it with. It's definitely worth a watch.

Movie Review Summary:
Grade: A
Current All-Time Rank: Best - #113
Thumb... Mostly UpAwards
2010: 6 nominations, 1 win