Life Itself

½★ - A Review by Cameron Kanachki

I just don't know what to say. Some films can do that to you. Some because of how good they are, & other times because of how bad they are. This is one of the latter times.

Life Itself is a putrid, manipulative, & unintentionally funny mess. Set between New York & Spain in the past, present, & future, the film follows Will Dempsey (played by Oscar Isaac), a hopeless romantic. At college, he meets Abby (played by Olivia Wilde), who he instantly falls in love with. After introducing her to his parents, Irwin (played by Mandy Patinkin) & Linda (played by Jean Smart), Will & Abby get married, & have a daughter, Dylan (played by Olivia Cooke). Also involved in this is Will's therapist, Dr. Cait Morris (played by Annette Bening). But Will & Abby might not be as happy in their marriage as they seem.

Another storyline involves Javier González (played by Sergio Peris-Mancheta), who is hired as a manager by Vincent Saccione (played by Antonio Banderas), a wealthy olive farmer in Spain. They strike up a friendship, & Javier ends up marrying Isabel (played by Laia Costa), & have a son, Rodrigo (played by Alex Monner). But Javier & Vincent come to an impasse as Vincent becomes interested in Isabel.

Eventually, these storylines will all coalesce together in some roundabout way, showing us how life can surprise us at any moment.

The cast is mediocre. Oscar Isaac isn't given much to do besides cry & be mopey, & as much as he tries to do a good job, he ultimately fails & gives a bad performance. Olivia Wilde isn't given much to do either, & she also gives a bad performance. And the rest of the cast gives bad performances. But this isn't all their fault.

Dan Fogelman's direction is awful. Fogelman puts way too much material into this film, basically putting 2 seasons of This is Us into a 2-hour film. And he fails miserably at this. He can't focus on anything, as he bounces between storylines with so much confusion.

And Dan Fogelman's screenplay is a catastrophe. The plot is a mess, killing off more characters than the Red Wedding in Game of Thrones. The characters are nothing but inhuman clichés. And the dialogue is over-sentimental & unintentionally hilarious.

This is the worst film of the year, & one of the worst films ever made. It has nothing of value to it, & we would all be better off if this film never existed.

Life Itself was seen by me at the MJR Partridge Creek Digital Cinema 14 in Clinton Township, MI on Saturday, September 22, 2018. It is in theaters everywhere. Its runtime is 118 minutes, & it is rated R for language including sexual references, some violent images & brief drug use.

Fahrenheit 11/9

★★★★★ - A Review by Cameron Kanachki

It should've never come to this. Our country should not be in the state it is today. Donald Trump shouldn't be our leader. He shouldn't be making a mockery of this country & spouting more & more stupid statements. Our members of Congress shouldn't be supporting the steps he takes & compromising with him. And his followers shouldn't be blindly following him as he leads us to a dark place ahead.

But, unsurprisingly, that's where we are today. Donald Trump is our leader. He lies, makes racist comments, commits treason, & does absolutely deplorable things, making us the laughing stock of the world. It shouldn't have come to this for us to wake up, but I'm not surprised that it did.

Fahrenheit 11/9 is a biting, horrifying, & altogether masterful documentary for our times. The film follows our favorite liberal muckraker Michael Moore as he explores how we got here & how we get out. He starts off with a conspiracy theory that may sound bizarre, but at this time, truth is stranger than fiction. In 2015, Donald Trump is riding high as host of The Apprentice. But something is making Trump mad: Gwen Stefani is making more money as a judge on The Voice than he is as the host of The Apprentice. So he decides to make a fake run for President to get NBC to pay up. However, as Trump makes some asinine statements, he is fired from NBC. But he has a "genius" idea: to continue on in his campaign. You all know what happened next: he denigrated his fellow Republican candidates, then the media, & finally his Democratic opponent Hillary Clinton. And not even Clinton could stop him as he won the 2016 presidential election (albeit losing the popular vote), where he only had a 15% chance of winning. 

From here, Moore continues on going after Trump for his creepy demeanor towards his daughter Ivanka, & his commonalities with Matt Lauer, Bill O'Reilly, Charlie Rose, Mike Halperin, & Roger Ailes. But after that, Moore looks more at the system that got us here, starting with Rick Snyder, the Governor of Michigan. In 2014, he decided to build a pipeline from Lake Huron to Flint, & in the meantime, Flint would have to switch over to the water from the Flint River. And here started an event in the poorest city in America that also has a majority African-American population that can only be described as an ethnic cleansing. People died from Legionnaire's disease, & children were permanently maimed from lead consumption. And this still goes on today, as Snyder did nothing to stop it, & even Barack Obama did nothing to stop it, as they all said it was safe to drink, & as the state government falsified the data involving those sick in Flint.

Next, Moore goes on to talk about the egregious sabotage of the 2016 Democratic primaries, where the primaries were rigged in favor of Hillary Clinton & against Bernie Sanders, who was much more admired by the people. Even West Virignia, where Sanders won all 55 counties in the primary, went for Clinton at the Democratic National Convention. Afterwards, 100 million people did not vote in the election, many of them disillusioned by not only Trump, but Clinton as well.

From here, Moore looks at the hopeful future of America, where the young people are rising up to reform our system. Many younger people are running for Congress on a progressive agenda, namely Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez in New York. Also, Moore takes a look at the ultimately successful teacher strike in West Virginia, & at the students in Parkland, Florida, where after the mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, have formed a major organization aimed at stronger gun control in America.

But ultimately, no one is spared in this film: not Trump, nor Snyder, nor Putin, nor Clinton, nor Obama, nor the Democrats, nor the Republicans, nor even Moore himself.

Michael Moore's direction is phenomenal. Moore is firing on all cylinders, both being bitingly funny at some parts, & heartbreakingly sincere at others. He gives us more of what we know he can give, & it's some of his best work.

This is the best documentary of the year. It is an impassioned call to arms, inspiring us all to rise up & do something to improve this country.

Fahrenheit 11/9 was seen by me at the MJR Troy Grand Digital Cinema 16 in Troy, MI on Friday, September 21, 2018. It is in theaters everywhere. Its runtime is 128 minutes, & it is rated R for language & some disturbing material/images.

Assassination Nation

★★★★★ - A Review by Cameron Kanachki

We live in a society.

The world is nothing short of extremely screwed up these days. Our President is a despot, racists are coming back out of the woodwork, mass shootings plague our country, & many other forms of bigotry still exist.

Assassination Nation is a huge middle finger to all the things that plague modern society, & what a thrilling middle finger it is. The film follows Lily Colson (played by Odessa Young), a normal high school student in Salem, Massachusetts. Lily is usually with her 3 best friends: Sarah (played by Suki Waterhouse); Bex (played by Hari Nef), a trans woman; & Em (played by Abra), who lives with her single mother, Nance (played by Anika Noni Rose), who doesn't have the best reputation in town. Lily is also dating Mark (played by Bill Skarsgård). Besides babysitting the kids of her neighbor, Nick (played by Joel McHale), & secretly texting someone she refers to as "Daddy," Lily is just a regular teenage girl.

One day, things start to turn weird in Salem. Pictures involving Mayor Bartlett (played by Cullen Moss) are leaked to the town. Soon after, pictures involving Principal Turrell (played by Colman Domingo) are also leaked to the town. As the investigation into these major hackings occur, half of the people in Salem get hacked, including Lily, whose friend Grace (played by Maude Apatow) tells her that Reagan (played by Bella Thorne), the head cheerleader, sent some photos of Lily to someone & those photos were hacked.

Eventually, the whole town starts to descend into mass mayhem, including murder, assault, hanging, shooting, torture, & other nefarious acts. Now it is time for Lily, Sarah, Bex, & Em to rise up, defend themselves, & survive the night.

The cast is fantastic. Young, Waterhouse, Abra, Skarsgard & McHale all give great performances. But the standout performance comes from Hari Nef. Her performance is filled with tenacity, attitude & flashiness, & she completely sells it.

Sam Levinson's direction is excellent. Levinson shows all the craziness & carnage with a surfeit of style, & just enough substance to keep it from going off the rails.

Sam Levinson's screenplay is brilliant. The plot is intriguing, the characters are idiosyncratic & interesting, & the dialogue is terrifically biting.

And Marcell Rév's cinematography is spectacular. Rév captures all of the craziness with a keen eye, & there's also a 3-minute long take which is just phenomenal.

This is one of the best films of the year. It's a polarizing film, for sure, but it's one that is a conversation starter, & has some great acting, directing & writing to boot.

Assassination Nation was seen by me at the MJR Marketplace Digital Cinema 20 in Sterling Heights, MI on Friday, September 21, 2018. It is in theaters everywhere. Its runtime is 108 minutes, & it is rated R for disturbing bloody violence, strong sexual material including menace, pervasive language, & for drug & alcohol use - all involving teens.

White Boy Rick

★★½ - A Review by Cameron Kanachki

If you're from Michigan, especially the Detroit area, then you already know the story of Rick Wershe Jr., AKA White Boy Rick. FBI informant at 14, cocaine kingpin by 16, & imprisoned at 17, receiving a longer sentence than many violent criminals. This is just about the perfect true story to inspire a film.

But White Boy Rick is ultimately nowhere near the level it should be. It should be wildly captivating, much like Goodfellas or Casino. But although it does have flashes of it, it's ultimately just below average. Set in 1980s Detroit, the film follows Rick Wershe Jr., (played by Richie Merritt), a 14-year-old kid living in a rundown neighborhood in Detroit. He lives with his gun-running father, Rick Sr., (played by Matthew McConaughey), & his drug-addicted sister, Dawn (played by Bel Powley). His grandparents, Roman (played by Bruce Dern) & Verna (played by Piper Laurie), don't live too far either, & always look down at their son & grandchildren's lives.

Rick Jr. goes to sell some guns one day, & the person purchasing them is local gangster Johnny Curry (played by Jonathan Majors). He eventually has Rick Sr. join his crew, & partners up with Johnny's brother, Rudell "Boo" Curry (played by RJ Cyler). While in the crew, he is coined with the nickname "White Boy Rick."

Some time later, the FBI comes to the Wershe household, asking about a gun purchase. While Rick Sr. refuses to tell them anything, Rick Jr. ends up becoming an FBI informant. His handlers, agents Alex Snyder (played by Jennifer Jason Leigh) & Frank Byrd (played by Rory Cochrane), & Detroit Police Department Narcotics Division Det. Mel Jackson (played by Brian Tyree Henry), supply him with crack to sell. This sends Rick Jr. into a way of life he never imagined.

When the FBI is done with him, Rick Jr. becomes a huge drug kingpin, getting himself involved with fellow drug kingpin Art Derrick (played by Eddie Marsan), & gets tied in with family of Detroit mayor Coleman Young & members of the Detroit Police Department. But Rick may have found himself in too deep of a hole to get out of.

The cast is excellent. Richie Merritt gives a great debut performance. He greatly portrays the insecurities of a young man in his situation. Matthew McConaughey gives a great performance as a conflicted & troubled father. And the rest of the cast, especially Powley, Leigh & Henry, do great jobs in supporting roles.

Yann Demange's direction is great. Although Demange does have some trouble handling all the many subplots occurring, he is able to demonstrate a lot of style & pull some great performances out of his cast.

The screenplay by Andy Weiss, Logan Miller & Noah Miller is very bad, & stops the film from being good. The plot has way too much going on & is not captivating enough, the characterization besides Rick Sr. & Rick Jr. is almost non-existent, & the dialogue is badly written.

And Tat Radcliffe's cinematography is amazing. Radcliffe's camerawork fits perfectly in the timeline of the film: it has that amazing 1980's neon look.

This is just a mediocre film. It does have some good performances, direction & visuals, but is sadly balanced out by a bad screenplay. As a film fan & as a Detroiter, I was very disappointed.

White Boy Rick was seen by me at the MJR Marketplace Digital Cinema 20 in Sterling Heights, MI on Saturday, September 15, 2018. It is in theaters everywhere. Its runtime is 111 minutes, & it is rated R for language throughout, drug content, violence, some sexual references, & brief nudity.

A Simple Favor

★★★★★ - A Review by Cameron Kanachki

Lately, many comedic actors & directors have gone more to the darker side of horrors & thrillers, namely Jordan Peele with Get Out & John Krasinski with A Quiet Place. Both of these instances have received critical & commercial success.

A Simple Favor is the newest of these crossovers, & is the most twisted & fun of them all. Based on the 2017 novel A Simple Favor by Darcey Bell, the film follows Stephanie Smothers (played by Anna Kendrick), a widowed mommy vlogger. She lives a very comfortable life with her son, Miles (played by Joshua Satine). She is an overachieving mother, always signing up to volunteer for PTA-led events at Miles' elementary school, much to the chagrin of the other parents, especially Darren (played by Andrew Rannells).

One day, Emily Nelson (played by Blake Lively), a PR director, is asked by her son, Nicky (played by Ian Ho), if he can have a playdate with Miles. After some begging, Emily finally relents, & also invites Stephanie over to have drinks with her. When Stephanie arrives, she is immediately stunned by Emily's very extravagant house. Over drinks, Stephanie & Emily begin to bond. Soon after, Stephanie meets Emily's husband, Sean Townsend (played by Henry Golding), a novelist & English professor.

A few days later, Emily calls Stephanie, asking her to do a simple favor: pick up Nicky from school for her, as she is doing something big at work. Stephanie obliges, expecting Emily to not be long. However, Emily doesn't arrive. Stephanie gets very worried, & after a while, calls the police & reports her disappearance. But as the days go by, Stephanie begins to wonder if she really knew Emily at all.

The cast is amazing. Anna Kendrick shows more of her perky self, & it's the best she's ever been at it. (The scene where she sings along to Ante Up by M.O.P. is awesome). Blake Lively is phenomenal, & this is easily her best performance. And their chemistry is powerful. They play off each other so well.

Paul Feig's direction is excellent. In his first non-full-fledged comedy in 15 years, Feig shows a lot of style here, & is able to handle the many tonal shifts that occur.

And Jessica Sharzer's screenplay is brilliant. The plot is so crazy, twisty, off-the-rails, but in such a good way. The characters are so well-written. And the dialogue is so perfect &, at many times, absolutely darkly hilarious.

This is one of the best dark comedies in recent memory. It has some great performances, stylish direction, & a truly amazing screenplay. It's a whole big bucket of fun.

A Simple Favor was seen by me at the MJR Marketplace Digital Cinema 20 in Sterling Heights, MI on Friday, September 14, 2018. It is in theaters everywhere. Its runtime is 117 minutes, & it is rated R for sexual content & language throughout, some graphic nude images, drug use & violence.

The Predator

★★★½ - A Review by Cameron Kanachki

A lot of people are tired with all of these franchise prequels & sequels & reboot & revivals. And honestly, I get it. There's too many of these films flooding the market today. Some of them are good or even great, but a lot of them aren't. They're just driven by money. It would be nice to see more original films getting the top spots in the box office, or films that aren't adapted from some major book series or TV series or other forms of media.

The Predator is definitely nowhere near a masterpiece, but it's a schlocky, fun, & thrilling blockbuster. The fourth film in the Predator franchise, the film follows Quinn McKenna (played by Boyd Holbrook), an Army Ranger sniper. While on a hostage retrieval mission, a spaceship crashes nearby, the ship containing a Predator. Quinn is able to stop the Prdeator & sends its armor off.

However, soon after, Quinn is captured by government agent Will Traeger (played by Sterling K. Brown). Traeger also takes the Predator in as well to a lab in order to perform observation & experimentation, & calls in biologist Dr. Casey Bracket (played by Olivia Munn) to study it. After some observation, the Predator wakes up, breaks out of its bonds, kills several lab workers, & escapes, but not before sparing Bracket.

Quinn is sent on to a bus with several government captives: Gaylord "Nebraska" Williams (played by Trevanté Rhodes), an ex-Marine; Coyle (played by Keegan-Michael Key), a veteran; Baxley (played by Thomas Jane), a veteran with Tourette syndrome; Nettles (played by Augusto Aguilera), an ex-helicopter pilot; & Lynch (played by Alfie Allen), another ex-Marine. After some banter on the bus, they see the Predator escape from the lab, & take over the bus, eventually bringing Bracket with them.

They return to the home of Quinn's ex-wife, Emily (played by Yvonne Strahovski), & their son, Rory (played by Jacob Tremblay), who has autism. Now, the group of soldiers, along with Rory & Bracket, must stop the Predator once & for all.

The cast is excellent. Boyd Holbrook shows that he can hold his own & demonstrates command in the lead role. Jacob Tremblay continues to show that he is the best young actor in the film industry. And Key, Rhodes, & Allen provide great comic relief.

Shane Black's direction is great. Black does come into trouble when it comes to rushing the action, but he does show a lot of control in the very good (& very bloody) action sequences.

And the screenplay by Shane Black & Fred Dekker is good. The plot is definitely messy (& rushed in the third act), & the characterization is also flawed (especially the portrayal of autism), but the dialogue is fantastic. Black can do no wrong when it comes to dialogue, as it's always hilarious & delightfully schlocky.

This is a good blockbuster. It's definitely flawed, but the great cast & the excellent dialogue save the film from being a total mess.

The Predator was seen by me at the MJR Marketplace Digital Cinema 20 in Sterling Heights, MI on Friday, September 14, 2018. It is in theaters everywhere. Its runtime is 107 minutes, & it is rated R for strong bloody violence, language throughout, & crude sexual references.

The Nun

★★★½ - A Review by Cameron Kanachki

Horror films involving demonic possession have been around for years. The Exorcist, Rosemary's Baby, & Paranormal Activity have all been seminal additions to this part of the horror genre.

The Nun is definitely not on the level of the films mentioned above, but it's a good horror film that has a lot of well-timed scares in it. Set in 1952 Romania, the film follows Sister Irene (played by Taissa Farmiga), a nun in a novitiate. She is called by the Vatican to go to the Cârta Monastery in Romania after 2 nuns were attacked by a demon, Valak (played by Bonnie Aarons), & one of the nuns killed herself as a result. Irene is sent along with Father Burke (played by Demián Bichir) to the monastery. When they arrive, they are met by Frenchie (played by Jonas Bloquet), a villager who delivers supplies to the abbey. Frenchie was the one who first discovered the body of the nun who killed herself.

While they try to investigate, Irene & Burke stay at the convent, while Frenchie returns to the village. There, they each reveal deep thoughts: Irene saw visions as a young girl, & Burke is haunted by the death of a child on which he performed an exorcism.

Eventually, during their time there, many mysterious things occur & become more & more ominous & more & more frequent. This is all caused by Valak. Irene, Burke & Frenchie must stop Valak before Valak possesses someone else in the abbey.

The cast is excellent. Taissa Farmiga gives an amazing scared-as-hell performance. If she continues on after this, she'll be right behind her sister, Vera Farmiga, as a scream queen in Hollywood. Demián Bichir also gives a great performance, continuing to fly under the radar.

Corin Hardy's direction is great. Although Hardy focuses too much on jump scares, he is able to overcome that with a very ominous atmosphere, & when the jump scares hit, they hit hard.

Gary Dauberman's screenplay is very good. The narrative is formulaic, but the plot is intriguing, & the dialogue is also formidable.

And Maxime Alexandre's cinematography is amazing. Alexandre's color palette is dark & brooding, matching the atmosphere of the film, & his camerawork also adds to the atmosphere.

This is a good horror film. While it does rely too much on jump scares & is a bit too formulaic, it is saved by great performances & excellent cinematography.

The Nun was seen by me at the MJR Marketplace Digital Cinema 20 in Sterling Heights, MI on Friday, September 7, 2018. It is in theaters everywhere. Its runtime is 96 minutes, & it is rated R for terror, violence, & disturbing/bloody images.