The Killing of a Sacred Deer

★★★★★ - A Review by Cameron Kanachki

Since his 2009 breakout film Dogtooth, the Greek director Yorgos Lanthimos has slowly worked his way to the top of absurdist cinema with his truly unique blend of dark comedy & psychological horror. His most recent film, 2016's The Lobster, was one of my favorite films of 2016, & was so deeply idiosyncratic you can't help but laugh at the absurdity of it.

But now, he has taken away most of the biting dark comedy & added more of the disturbing psychological horror with The Killing of a Sacred Deer, an equally hilarious & terrifying film. The film follows Steven Murphy (played by Colin Farrell), a renowned surgeon. He & his wife, Anna (played by Nicole Kidman), have 2 children: 14-year old Kim (played by Raffey Cassidy) & 12-year-old Bob (played by Sunny Suljic).

Recently, Steven has become a mentor to Martin (played by Barry Keoghan), the son of a former patient of Steven's. As Martin becomes closer to Steven, he also becomes closer to Kim. Also, Martin becomes more unhinged, basically coercing Steven into meeting his mother (played by Alicia Silverstone), who is obviously sexually attracted to Steven.

One day, before school, Bob has a bad experience & is sent to the hospital. Martin meets Steven at the hospital, & tells him that for something Steven did in the past, he must pay back & make an ultimate sacrifice. But this is only the tip of the iceberg, as Steven has more secrets, including one that his anesthesiologist, Matthew (played by Bill Camp) has in his hands.

The cast is excellent. Farrell & Kidman are dynamite. Silverstone gives her greatest performance ever. But Barry Keoghan is the true star. He makes you feel equally frightened & creeped out.

Yorgos Lanthimos's direction is amazing. He creates such a tense & disturbing atmopshere that you can't tear yourself away from the screen.

The screenplay by Yorgos Lanthimos & Efthymis Filippou is brilliant. The dark comedy Lanthimos is known for, although there is less of it here, always manages to stand out. And the characters are so idiosyncratic that they're almost impossible to describe.

The cinematography by Thimios Bakatakis is astounding. Every shot feels so cold & distant, reminding us of the cinematography from the films of Stanley Kubrick, especially The Shining.

And the sound design is absolutely stunning. It's so jarring that it will shake you to your very core.

This is one of the best films of the year. It holds you tight & doesn't let go for its entire runtime as it terrifies you, disturbs you, & possibly makes you laugh.

The Killing of a Sacred Deer was seen by me at the Landmark Main Art Theatre in Royal Oak, MI on Friday, October 27, 2017. It is currently in 3 theaters in the Detroit area: the Landmark Main Art Theatre in Royal Oak, MI; the AMC Forum 30 in Sterling Heights, MI; & the AMC Livonia 20 in Livonia, MI. Its runtime is 121 minutes, & it is rated R for disturbing violent & sexual content, some graphic nudity & language.

The Florida Project

★★★★★ - A Review by Cameron Kanachki

I've always gravitated towards films that show realistic portrayals of people. It's probably because these stories aren't told that often. They're buried under the pile of blockbusters that come out every weekend. However, I've always managed to find the diamond in the rough with these films.

The Florida Project is no exception. The film follows Moonee (played by Brooklynn Kimberly Prince), a 6-year-old living with her mother, Halley (played by Bria Vinaite) at The Magic Castle, an extended stay motel in Kissimmee, Florida, not too far from Disney World. To Moonee, the world is a magic kingdom. She plans to spend the summer playing with her friends, Scooty (played by Christopher Rivera) & Dicky (played by Aiden Malik), including throwing water balloons at tourists, spitting off the balcony, & sneaking around the motel.

Along the way, Moonee meets a new friend, Jancey (played by Valeria Cotto), who lives at the neighboring extended-stay motel, Futureland. Together, the 4 try to make the best of their summer.

But not everything is well. Halley is physically unfit to be a mother. She does drugs, is neglectful towards Moonee, & has gone to some low depths to make some money. This unhappy reality is inching ever so closer to Moonee, but at the end of the day, Halley truly cares for Moonee, as all the things she does is for her. And always in the background is Bobby (played by Willem Dafoe), the manager of The Magic Castle, who besides dealing with maintenance issues & working with his son, Jack (played by Caleb Landry Jones), would do literally anything to protect the kids that live there.

The cast is spectacular. Brooklynn Kimberly Prince & Bria Vinaite are some of the greatest discoveries in cinema in a long time. Prince is an absolute star in the making. Vinaite, who was discovered on Instagram, is absolutely stellar. The rest of the child cast, namely Cotto, is excellent as well. But the best performance comes from Willem Dafoe. Dafoe, one of the most underrated actors of our time, is nothing short of astounding here. His performance, like many others in the film, is so heartwarming & heartbreaking all at once.

Sean Baker's direction is amazing. He mixes an atmosphere of childlike wonder with an atmosphere of adult despair so perfectly.

The screenplay by Sean Baker & Chris Bergoch is perfect. The plot, characters, & dialogue feel so amazingly raw & real that it hurts.

And Alexis Zabe's cinematography is stellar. Shot on 35mm, Zabe captures the children's vision so perfectly, with every shot looking like a bright & colorful painting. And the last sequence of the film, shot on an iPhone (like Baker's previous film, 2015's Tangerine) is nothing short of perfect.

This is one of the best films of the year. It's an amazing portrayal of childhood. It may not be a great life for everyone, but it's raw & real. And shouldn't we see more realistic depictions of life like this? I sure think we should.

The Florida Project was seen by me at the Landmark Main Art Theatre in Royal Oak, MI on Friday, October 20, 2017. It is currently in 3 theaters in the Detroit area: the Landmark Main Art Theatre in Royal Oak, MI; The Maple Theater in Bloomfield Township, MI; & the Michigan Theater in Ann Arbor, MI. Its runtime is 111 minutes, & it is rated R for language throughout, disturbing behavior, sexual references & some drug material.

Blade Runner 2049

★★★★★ - A Review by Cameron Kanachki

"I've seen things you people wouldn't believe. Attack ships on fire off the shoulder of Orion. I've seen C-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhäuser Gate. All those moments will be lost in time, like tears in rain. Time to die."

Those immortal words uttered by Rutger Hauer in the 1982 sci-fi masterpiece Blade Runner have stuck with pop culture through 35 years & 7 different cuts of the film (2007's The Final Cut being the definitive version). Those words have made us wonder what it truly means to be human.

And now, 35 years later, the sequel, Blade Runner 2049, has arrived. This was one of my most highly anticipated films of the year, because of the expectations set by the first film, aling with the people involved in the film.

And it destroyed those expectations, & ends up as the best film of the year so far. Set in 2049 Los Angeles, the film focuses on Officer K (played by Ryan Gosling), an officer sent to retire (kill) replicants. The name for his occupation is still "blade runner." K lives with his female companion, Joi (played by Ana de Armas).

After an encounter with Nexus-8 replicant Sapper Morton (played by Dave Bautista), K returns to the police headquarters & meets with Lt. Joshi (played by Robin Wright) over a box found at Sapper's farm. Lt. Joshi tells K to destroy the box, fearful that if the contents of the box are revealed, a war will occur.

K eventually encounters ruthless Wallace Corporation CEO Niander Wallace (played by Jared Leto) & his assistant, Luv (played by Sylvia Hoeks), who find out about the contents of the box. Eventually, K is led on a journey to protect the remains of the box, encountering replicant designer Dr. Ana Stelline (played by Carla Juri), orphanage leader Mr. Cotton (played by Lennie James), & prostitute Mariette (played by Mackenzie Davis), but his journey will lead him to an even more important person, former blade runner Rick Deckard (played by Harrison Ford).

The cast is amazing. Gosling gives one of his best performances. Ford gives his best performance yet. Leto does an excellent job. But the best performances come from Sylvia Hoeks, Ana de Armas, & Mackenzie Davis. They manage to steal every single scene they're in.

Denis Villeneuve's direction is spectacular. Villeneuve, who in my opinion is the greatest director in film at the moment, has taken on a world that was already great to begin with & made it better, permeating the film with such a tense atmopshere.

The screenplay by Hampton Fancher & Michael Green is excellent. The plot is so intricately created, like a puzzle where even 1 missing piece will not show any part of the big picture.

No words can describe Roger Deakins's cinematography. Every shot is like a majestic mural just waiting for people to willingly gaze at it for ages. This is some of the best cinematography in film history.

Joe Walker's editing is excellent. It's definitely slow, but that's a great thing about this film. It's unconventionally paced. It makes you wait for the revelations of the plot.

Renée April's costume design is amazing. The futuristic costumes are beautiful to look at & are definitely immersive.

Dennis Gassner's production design is nothing short of breathtaking. The futuristic buildings with the big neon lights are just a part of what makes the set so immersive.

The makeup & hairstyling is amazing. Many of the amazing characters are enhanced even more by the futuristic makeup & hairstyling.

The sound design is absolutely impeccable. It ranges from loud & bombastic to quiet & calm, & it's such a pleasant thing to hear.

The score by Hans Zimmer & Benjamin Wallfisch is absolutely fantastic. This is arguably their best score yet. The music provokes so many emotions through its excellent use of synthesizers.

And the visual effects are nothing short of spectacular. This is some of the best CGI in film history, & the effects become a character themselves because of their immersive scale.

This is not only the best film of the year so far, but it's the best sci-fi film I've ever seen, & the best sequel I've ever seen, managing to improve on the original, which is a masterpiece in its own right. This was definitely a theatrical experience I don't witness that much, & I'm glad I did.

Blade Runner 2049 was seen by me at the MJR Marketplace Digital Cinema 20 in Sterling Heights, MI on Friday, October 6, 2017. It is in theaters everywhere. Its runtime is 164 minutes, & it is rated R for violence, some sexuality, nudity & language.

Battle of the Sexes

★★★★½ - A Review by Cameron Kanachki

In the past month, many exemplary women have come out & bravely announced that they had been sexually harassed, sexually assaulted, or raped by their male co-workers & men in positions of power. The main story has focused around Harvey Weinstein, the founder & former president of Miramax & The Weinstein Company. Since then, more women have come out against their abusers, both in & out of the film industry. These women have shown that they will no longer be silenced. They will no longer be forced to suffer alone through their trauma of past abuse. They have shown through many ways that they will end this despicable era of harassment towards women at all costs, becoming excellent feminist role models to women everywhere.

Because of this, Battle of the Sexes couldn't have been more timely. Set in 1973 & based on the true story, the film follows Billie Jean King (played by Emma Stone), the famous tennis player/feminist. Feeling disillusioned by the sexist policies of the Lawn Tennis Association set by tour promoter Jack Kramer (played by Bill Pullman), King, along with eight other tennis players, including Rosie Casals (played by Natalie Morales) & Jane Bartkowicz (played by Martha MacIsaac) & the founder of World Tennis magazine, Gladys Heldman (played by Sarah Silverman), form a women's professional tennis tour. King's friend, fashion designer Ted Tinling (played by Alan Cumming), also joins in to help with the organization. Although it is unsanctioned by Kramer, the struggling tour gets more attention when the cigarette company Virginia Slims becomes a sponsor of the tournament, along with the arrival of Australian tennis star Margaret Court (played by Jessica McNamee).

Meanwhile, the famous tennis star/hustler/unapologetical chauvinist pig Bobby Riggs (played by Steve Carell) is going through some personal troubles. His wife, Priscilla (played by Elisabeth Shue) is about to leave him due to his extreme gambling addiction, & at the age of 55, is way past his prime. Having just been thrown out of his house, Riggs comes up with a bet that he can beat any female tennis player, even at the age of 55, boasting that female tennis is not as strong as male tennis.

King declines the offer; however, Court takes him on, & is soundly defeated. At that moment, King decides to take him on, but wanting a major say in the arrangements. King trains a lot more than Riggs, who barely trains, believing that he will destroy King like he destroyed Court. But King has a lot of perseverance & strength to her, so the match will not be as easy as Riggs thinks it will.

Off the court, King is also going through personal issues as well. Although she is married to Larry King (played by Austin Stowell), King develops a relationship with her hairdresser, Marilyn Barnett (played by Andrea Riseborough). With this & her devotion to feminist causes, the match becomes more than that for her.

The cast is superb. Emma Stone gives one of the 3 best performances of her career. Steve Carell also gives one of the 3 best performances of his career, & is making a name for himself as a dramatic actor as well as a comedic actor, showing a pitch-perfect balance between comedy & drama in his performance here. Sarah Silverman also shows her noted feistiness in her short screentime, & it is excellent.

The direction by Jonathan Dayton & Valerie Faris is great. Although their direction isn't as great as their direction for their masterpiece, 2006's Little Miss Sunshine (but then again, what will? That film is one of my top 10 favorite films of all time), it hits a lot more of the notes than it misses.

The screenplay by Simon Beaufoy is amazing. It walks on that fine line between comedy & drama excellently.

And Linus Sandgren's cinematography is stunning. Shot on 16mm film, Sandgren's camerawork is almost near perfect, & that image on the sadly-going-out-of-style 16mm film is clear & crisp. It's definitely some of the best cinematography this year.

This is a truly great dramedy. While some parts are a little unfocused, it's overall an excellent account of a truly groundbreaking moment in sports history. And it's also a great film for women, showcasing Billie Jean King for what she was: an amazing tennis player who was an amazing role model for women everywhere.

Battle of the Sexes was seen by me on Friday, September 29, 2017 at the MJR Marketplace Digital Cinema 20 in Sterling Heights, MI. It is currently in 3 theaters in the Detroit area: the AMC Forum 30 in Sterling Heights, MI; the Farmington Civic Theater in Farmington, MI; & the United Artists Commerce Township Stadium 14 in Walled Lake, MI. Its runtime is 121 minutes, & it is rated PG-13 for some sexual content & partial nudity.

Stronger

★★★★ - A Review by Cameron Kanachki

David Gordon Green, that amazing cinematic poet, has always been one of my favorite filmmakers. From his debut film, George Washington, to his magnum opus, All the Real Girls, Green has managed  to create an effortlessly human & poetic atmosphere.

And now, he has brought this human atmosphere to Stronger, a powerful but somewhat cliched film. Based on the memoir of the same name by Jeff Bauman & Bret Witter, & set in 2013, the film follows Jeff Bauman (played by Jake Gyllenhaal), a ne'er-do-well working at a Costco in Boston. He lives with his alcoholic mother, Patty (played by Miranda Richardson) in a small apartment. At the local bar, he runs into his ex-girlfriend, Erin Hurley (played by Tatiana Maslany), whom he still loves, but is unable to commit. He decides to help raise money for Erin, who is running in the Boston Marathon to raise money for her hospital.

On April 15, 2013, the day of the marathon, Jeff struggles to get to the area near the finish line, but he does just before Erin crosses it. Right when she approaches, a bomb goes off, & another one goes off 10 seconds later. After being sent to the hospital, Jeff has his legs amputated below the knee. Once regaining consciousness, he reports that he saw the bombers. After identifying them, & with their capture, Jeff is hailed as a hero.

But no matter how much Jeff is hailed, the aftereffects are astronomical. He struggles with the newfound fame & the interviews Patty sets up, much to Erin's chagrin. Patty eventually starts to enable Jeff's alcoholism, & causes him to miss many physical therapy appointments. But Jeff is afraid & his PTSD is becoming worse, forcing him to rethink his relationships.

The performances are exemplary. Jake Gyllenhaal gives one of the best performances of his career. Tatiana Maslany gives her best performance. And Miranda Richardson is almost unrecognizable, disappearing into her character. Honestly, I was shocked to discover in the credits that she was in the film.

David Gordon Green's direction is perfectly subdued. Another film that dealt with the Boston Marathon bombing, 2016's Patriots Day, was a good film, but my main criticism was that the film didn't feel human enough. Well, this film brought that human element that Patriots Day sorely lacked. And that's all thanks to Green & his knack for an inherently human feel.

And John Pollono's screenplay is good. It's a little cliched, & some scenes drag on, but for the most part, it's definitely more than servicable.

This is one of the better survival biopics in years, probably since 2010's 127 Hours. While it feels cliched & somewhat unbearably slow, the performances & direction elevate the film.

Stronger was seen by me at the MJR Marketplace Digital Cinema 20 in Sterling Heights, MI on Saturday, September 23, 2017. It is no longer in theaters in the Detroit area. Its runtime is 119 minutes, & it is rated R for language throughout, some graphic injury images, & brief sexuality/nudity.

Kingsman: The Golden Circle

★★★★★ - A Review by Cameron Kanachki

2015's Kingsman: The Secret Service was a way-overdue, fresh & fun addition to the spy genre. So it was a foregone conclusion that I would be highly expecting its sequel, Kingsman: The Golden Circle.

And what a sequel it was. It's just as gleefully action-filled, violent, & funny as the first film. Once again, the film focuses on Gary "Eggsy" Unwin, AKA Galahad (played by Taron Egerton), who has been an agent of Kingsman for a year. He is engaged to Crown Princess Tilde of Sweden (played by Hanna Alström), who he helped save in the first film.

While in Sweden, the Kingsman headquarters in London are struck by missiles, leaving Eggsy & Merlin (played by Mark Strong) as the only surviving members of Kingsman. Because of this, they must follow the Doomsday protocol, which leads them to the Statesman Distillery Co. in Kentucky, a secret organization posing as a Bourbon distillery. The head of Statesmen, Champagne (played by Jeff Bridges) briefs Eggsy & Merlin about a drug cartel called The Golden Circle, led by Poppy Adams (played by Julianne Moore), who is hiding in the jungles of Cambodia in a 1950's American-style hideout known as Poppy Land, where she has taken Elton John (played by himself) captive.

Poppy announces that she has put a toxin in every single drug in the world, causing death within days. Eggsy & Merlin must find her, stop her, & release the antidote. Three other Statesmen agents, Ginger Ale (played by Halle Berry), Tequila (played by Channing Tatum), & Whiskey (played by Pedro Pascal) also join into help. But an old friend, Harry Hart, AKA Galahad (played by Colin Firth), was discovered by Statesmen after his presumed death, & Eggsy & Merlin must help him get back to normal as well.

The cast is spectacular. Firth, Egerton & Bridges do great work. Moore is deliciously villainous & brings a side of hers to this performance that we've almost never seen in her career. And Elton John does an excellent job of playing a gleefully profane version of himself.

Matthew Vaughn's direction is excellent. His control over the action sequences is excellent, & he brings a huge jolt of energy to the film, just like he did for the first film.

And the screenplay by Jane Goldman & Matthew Vaughn is brilliant. Just like the first film, this has a lot of scathingly funny dark humor that works excellently.

This is one of the better action films in recent memory. It's fun, action-packed, & absolutely awesome, & definitely more awesome than most action films out there currently.

Kingsman: The Golden Circle was seen by me at the MJR Marketplace Digital Cinema 20 in Sterling Heights, MI on Friday, September 22, 2017. It is in theaters everywhere. Its runtime is 141 minutes, & it is rated R for sequences of strong violence, drug content, language throughout & some sexual material.

The Lego Ninjago Movie

★★★★½ - A Review by Cameron Kanachki

The Lego Movie franchise has been a welcome addition to the animation genre over the past 3 years. Both 2014's The Lego Movie & this year's The Lego Batman Movie have been some of the best animation films of the century, adding a new style of animation & a new style of humor to a genre that had been going somewhat stale.

The Lego Ninjago Movie, while not the best of the franchise, still stands on its own as a different & brilliantly funny animated film. The film focuses on Lloyd Garmadon (voiced by Dave Franco), a teenager in the city of Ninjago. He lives with his mother, Koko (voiced by Olivia Munn). Since he is the son of the tyrannical Lord Garmadon (voiced by Justin Theroux), Lloyd is seen as a pariah by the townspeople.

But Lloyd has a secret. He is a ninja, along with Kai (voiced by Michael Peña), Jay (voiced by Kumail Nanjiani), Nya (voiced by Abbi Jacobson), Zane (voiced by Zach Woods), & Cole (voiced by Fred Armisen), who are all under the tutelage of Master Wu (voiced by Jackie Chan).

On Lloyd's birthday, Lord Garmadon happens to attack Ninjago again, & fails, thanks to the work of the ninjas. Lord Garmadon promises to return with a weapons-immune mech. However, when the ninjas return, Master Wu tells them they are not real ninjas, & that they must use powers from within. However, Master Wu mentions an Ultimate Weapon, but the Ultimate Weapon is forbidden to be used.

The next day, Lord Garmadon succesfully attacks Ninjago with a cat named Meowthra, & discovers Lloyd is a ninja. Lloyd denounces his father, confusing Lord Garmadon.

Now, with the city under attack, Master Wu urges the ninjas to use the Ultimate Ultimate Weapon & stop Lord Garmadon & Meowthra from destroying Ninjago, & Lloyd might actually end up bonding with his father, starting a relationship they never had.

The voice cast is excellent. Franco, Chan, Nanjiani & Woods are excellent, but the real standout of the voice cast is Theroux, who is so deliciously over the top.

The direction by Charlie Bean, Paul Fisher & Bob Logan is good. Although there are a few rough spots (which I expected since they are all first-time directors), the direction is good enough to overcome those rough spots.

The screenplay by Bob Logan, Paul Fisher, William Wheeler, Tom Wheeler, Jared Stern, John Whittington, Hilary Winston, Dan Hageman & Kevin Hageman is brilliant. It has the quirky & always-hilarious humor that has been part of the first 2 films of the franchise.

And the animation is amazing. Like the other films of the franchise, the animation captures the Legos so amazingly.

This is one of the better animated films of the year. While it isn't the best of the franchise or the best of the year, it certainly makes up for its shortcomings with its excellent humor.

The Lego Ninjago Movie was seen by me at the MJR Marketplace Digital Cinema 20 in Sterling Heights, MI on Friday, September 22, 2017. It is in theaters everywhere. Its runtime is 101 minutes, & it is rated PG for some mild action & rude humor.