Best Films of 2017

This is my list of best films that I saw in the theater this year.

Silence is one of the most challenging movies of the year as Martin Scorsese adapts Shusaku Endo’s novel about Jesuit priests in feudal Japan. It asks brutal questions about faith under fire. It’s affecting and powerful. I’d say more but I think it’s something that just needs to be experienced and digested, slowly.

 

 

How do you say goodbye to one of the longest running comic book characters to grace the screen by one actor, the answer is Logan. Hugh Jackman is a revelation as a broken mutant in a world that’s turned against them. On top of his performance you have Patrick Stewart and new comer Dafne Keen who complete this film perfectly. James Mangold creates not just a good comic book movie but one that transcends the genre. Still one of the very best of the year. Don’t miss The 602 Club episode on it!

It would be hard to eclipse what I already wrote about the film in my review so here is a bit of that here.

Gal Gadot is a star. She sells every moment of this film. She has a wonderful, childlike innocence that is needed to bring this character, raised in paradise to life. Diana’s transformation from innocence to a fuller understanding of the real world is powerful and moving. The chemistry she has with Chris Pine is fantastic. They are the heart and soul of this movie and luckily they do not disappoint.

The fight scenes in the movie are incredible. Many superhero movies these days seem to have similar types of set pieces, but Wonder Woman does a marvelous job of making her fighting style feel fresh, leaving you silently fist-pumping in your seat. Even the more CGI-heavy battle at the end has enough emotion built into it, to make you care about what’s happening.

One final note, Patty Jenkins direction is excellent. This woman needs to be given a sequel, as well as more movies to direct. She understands clearly how to make a superhero movie feel serious and fun all at the same time and that’s not always easy to do.

Wonder Women is the first major female superhero to be given her own movie (yes I discount Catwoman and Elektra as they are more side characters) and it’s a triumph. The film is serious in tone, but with laughs aplenty. It’s the movie we all hoped for and deserve. Wonder Woman is rated 4 and half out of 5 stars.

Don’t miss The 602 Club episode on it here!

Like Wonder Woman, War is a movie I adored this year and the perfect way to wrap up the Apes trilogy.

This movie has so many other themes I could talk about, but honestly, just go see it. It’s a triumph of filmmaking. The effects are some of the best ever seen on screen. There was never a moment I didn’t believe what was happening. The music was moving and perfectly matched to the film. War for the Planet of the Apes is the perfect conclusion to one of the best film trilogies in years. It’s rated 5 out of 5 Bad Apes.

Don’t miss The 602 Club episode on it here!

Christopher Nolan delivers again. He subverts expectations in the best way by telling the story from three perspectives, air, land and sea. Each of these also take place over different spans of time that collide by the end. The movie left me feeling like I had actually been apart of each perspective. This is a must see from the year. Don’t miss The 602 Club episode here!

 

Like Dunkirk, this movie is a pinnacle of cinema as art. The themes resonate with the world we live in and it’s a treat for the imagination. It’s one of those movies that needs to be seen multiple times to truly soak in everything it is doing but that left me breathless in my first viewing. I believe it will only rise in people’s estimation over the coming years. Don’t miss The 602 Club episode here!

 

No movie was more unfairly maligned than this one in 2017. It had a lot to over come in it’s production, most of all, a studio that would not stop meddling. Yet for all of this, what we got still let me grinning.

This movie is by no means perfect. It does feel rushed at only 2 hours. There is a lot happening and it does seem like a bit more time with the stories of the villain, Victor, Barry and Arthur could have helped the audience connect even more with the story. The villain is one note, but it does leave us with more time to focus on the heroes and their journeys to becoming a team. There are places where you wish the effects team had more time with the CGI to refine it and make it better. The best comparison that I can make would be the DC animated films that have come out over the last few years or some of your favorite episodes of Justice League United, if you liked those, you’ll like this. Overall, what wins you over is the team, their dynamic and the charisma they bring to each moment. Justice League is rated 4 out of 5 resurrections.

Don’t miss The 602 Club episode here!

I love these kinds of movies, small, intimate and affecting. I honestly cannot say more that I did in my review and encourage you to check that out.

The more I think about the movie the more I like it and that’s always a good sign. It’s well acted and moving. I highly recommend Lady Bird, it’s rated four and a half out of five stars.

Check your cynicism at the door as Hugh Jackman and cast are the perfect antidote to the dourness of 2017. The film and it’s music are a celebration of everything that is good, true friendship, not looking to others for your self worth and not living life as a consumer but as a giver. Loved this last theme, as the movie shows Barnum almost lose everything he’s built because of his selfish using of people to prop himself up. I left the theater with a lighter step and joy in my heart.

Disappointments

2017 also had a few movies that I was looking forward to that I was disappointed in and the biggest was The Last Jedi. My review says it all and The 602 Club and Cinema Stories podcast allowed me to cover it from a few different perspectives. A few other notable letdowns are Thor: Ragnarok, Logan Lucky and The Shape of Water.

Honorable Mentions

Ghost in the Shell was surprisingly good, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2 was even better than the first, I really enjoyed Alien: Covenant, Baby Driver was fun, but I did not love it like others and lastly, Their Finest was a nice companion to Dunkirk.

PS. I have have now seen Darkest Hour and Molly’s Game. They both make the list. amazing films in acting and story. Highly recommend both!

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 – Review

Don’t miss The 602 Club episode!

Marvel is a machine. It’s been pumping out hits (with the occasional miss) since Iron Man in 2008. This summer is no exception as the ever popular Guardians of the Galaxy are back in Vol. 2. The first movie was cotton candy, summer fun, so the question is, can this second film find more depth than the first? Luckily, it does.

Family 

Guardians of the Galaxy was about a group of misfits finding family together and Volume 2 is a continuation of that theme. The concept of the the Guardians as family is challenged in this movie as both Peter and Gamora have to deal with prior or blood relatives. Peter finally comes face to face with his father and as Luke found out in The Empire Strikes Back, knowing who your father is, is not always the best thing. Peter’s story mirrors much of Luke’s as he must choose between ruling the galaxy with his father or saving it as a Guardian. He also finds that he may always have had what he was looking for right in front of him.

Peter’s dad is a Celestial, basically a god, who has lived for millions of years and in that time learned to create worlds. Being alone for so long, he found a way to create a physical form and travel the stars, looking for companionship and love. This is how he met Peter’s mother. Ego, the name of Peter’s dad, decides to turn his back on love and embrace a “higher” calling, to expand the universe, remaking worlds in his image.

Ego has spent millennia trying to create progeny that can assist him in his quest to remake the galaxy and Peter is the first child to share his abilities. He’s no longer alone, but it’s not truly family that he is after, it’s just power. He’s come to see himself as above all other life, since he’s immortal, at least as long as his essence is kept alive at the core of the planet he’s constructed. He has divorced himself from the family of beings in the galaxy, placing himself on a higher plane because of his immortality, which enables him to rationalize exterminating whomever and whatever, since comparatively they are inferior. It’s a reminder that the moment people being to see themselves as better than others, it usually leads to marginalization or at it’s worst, extermination.

Gamora and Nebula finally get something to do in this film! They get the opportunity to deal with what has driven them apart and left them at each others throats for so long. They come to terms with the ways in which Thanos drove a wedge between them, used them and realize that they are actually on the same side. Forgiveness is given and it’s a beautiful scene in the movie. It was great to see them really give these actors a storyline to dig into.

The Movie

This movie is not as slickly put together as the first, it does not seem to flow quite as well as the original, but it has more depth and that makes up for it. It’s nice to have the characters go deeper into themselves. It’s still a little cliche, but it feels stronger and more resonant as a film. Because of these things it’s rated 4 out of 5 Baby Groot dances.

PS

Don’t forget to review and rate The 602 Club on Apple Podcasts for your chance to win some incredible, exclusive Guardians of the Galaxy swag (pictured here)! 

Guardians of the Galaxy – Review

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Guardians of the Galaxy is summer fun at it’s best. Great jokes, action, adventure, explosions and a fantastic soundtrack. This movie will have you cheering and laughing the whole time. Director James Gunn has created an incredible looking film. There may be CGI all over the screen, but you never for a minute don’t believe that everything you are seeing is “real”. This movie proves that CGI can be just as affective as practical, if it is done well. As an aside, this should give everyone hope for the new Star Wars movies, since they both Disney properties.

This is the latest film in the Marvel cinematic universe and you can tell they are a well-oiled machine. They are able to take the strangest ideas and make them work, talking raccoons and trees seem completely normal in the hands of such professionals. What is lacking is real heart. Everything in the movie is choreographed. Much of the movie tells the audience things instead of showing us. By the middle of the movie this band of miscreants goes from enemies to friends, which is said by the characters multiple times; basically, “Isn’t it nice that we’re friends now”. The problem is that the film does not establish enough of a reason for this change.

Another issue is some of the cast. Zoe Saldona lacks any emotional punch as Gamora. There are quite a few times she is telling a story or meant to make the audience feel something and it just falls flat. She perfect when asked to kick someone’s ass but fails when it’s most important for the tender moments. Dave Bautista will have you snickering at his inability to understand metaphors, even if he is also lacking in emotive ability, which is a detriment to his character’s story. Luckily, the rest of the cast is wonderful. Chris Pratt is a star, it’s official. He carries the entire film. Bradley Cooper who voices Rocket the raccoon and Vin Diesel as Groot are as close to Han and Chewie as has been seen in years.

One more criticism. A fun as the movie is, it doesn’t have much to say. It’s cotton candy, good as you taste it, but gone in a flash. It’s a problem with the Marvel line as a whole (Captain America: The Winter Soldier is a fortunate outlier). There is a formula for their team-up films as seen in Avengers and now continued in Guardians. It’s a problem. Marvel may have the corner on fun, but if they want their films to stand the test of time, it would behoove them to give them some gravitas.

Even with all of this, Guardians Of the Galaxy is the most fun you can have at the movies this summer and a spectacle not to be missed.

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Exclusive: Read J.K. Rowling’s new post for the latest Harry Potter ‘gossip’

Can’t get enough of Harry Potter? Then this is for you. Since March, best-selling author J. K. Rowling has been writing original stories about the imaginary 2014 Quidditch World Cup Finals for Pottermore, the online home for the world of Harry Potter. 

Rowling shared her latest Pottermore.com story exclusively with TODAY.com. Written in the voice of the fictional Daily Prophet’s gossip correspondent Rita Skeeter, this post centers around the reunion of Harry Potter and his friends at the Quidditch World Cup Finals. Click here for the new Harry Potter Story 

For Taylor Swift, the Future of Music Is a Love Story

Where will the music industry be in 20 years, 30 years, 50 years?

Before I tell you my thoughts on the matter, you should know that you’re reading the opinion of an enthusiastic optimist: one of the few living souls in the music industry who still believes that the music industry is not dying…it’s just coming alive

‘Justice’ is served with another helping of Superman

Who’s better, Superman or Batman? Zack Snyder doesn’t have to choose a favorite since he’s getting to put both on the big screen at the same time.

The director of last year’s Man of Steel doubles down on A-list superheroes in his follow-up Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (in theaters May 6, 2016), teaming a returning Henry Cavill as the big guy in the cape and “S” on his chest with Ben Affleck as the latest cinematic incarnation of the Dark Knight.

Europe Is Starting to Take American Soccer Seriously (Seriously!)

Did American soccer just win the football world’s respect?

The World Cup is over for the U.S.A. after a heartbreaking loss to Belgium. But that defeat made for what some regard as perhaps the best match of a tournament that has thrilled from the start. More importantly, the U.S. has been called a “world-class team” by the likes of Barry Glendenning, the ever-critical football writer from The Guardian. Glendenning is perhaps not the Supreme Leader of Football (that title belongs to Sepp Blatter), but he is near the epicenter of international football, and he does not compliment teams lightly.

The real story behind the war over YA novels

Few categories of literature right now seem to receive the level of hatred reserved for young adult fiction, which is the subject of nearly endless editorials on its supposed inanity, excessive sexuality, darkness, and girlyness. It doesn’t escape notice that there’s a strong whiff of sexism underlying the wave of YA hate—the genre is heavily dominated by women, and female authors can recount their experiences with sexism first hand.

Coming Out as a Christian

I’ve been thinking a lot about what it means to live transparently—especially when it comes to my digital life. For as long as I’ve been on social media (I first joined Facebook in 2005), I’ve oscillated between expressing myself honestly and expressing contrived personas that I broadcast on Twitter, Instagram, and everywhere else.

Take, for instance, my well-documented love of Rolling Rock. Anyone who follows me on any website knows I’ve posted endlessly about the famously watery beer for the past three years. My Instagram feed was once a veritable shrine to Rolling Rock. My friends gave me four cases of it for my birthday last year. Heck, my Twitter fan club (yes, it’s still weird to me, too) uses a picture of Rolling Rock as its header image! I know how to advertise my love for a product.

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My Wife Has Tattoos: Marriage, New Birth, and the Gospel

Today is the day of my wedding.  And I am not marrying the girl of my dreams.

If you would have told me when I was a teenager that my wife would have seven tattoos, a history in drugs, alcohol, and attending heavy metal concerts, I would have laughed at you, given you one of my courtship books, and told you to take a hike.  My plans were much different, much more nuanced with careful planning, much more clean-cut, and much more, well, about me.

When Gifts Lose Their Luster

There are times I grow weary of good things. Things I love. Things I would not want to live without. Things that have the ability to make my heart beat a little bit faster and keep my mind racing when I ought to be asleep. They are good things, but somehow, through time or familiarity or neglect or something else, they begin to feel not so good. I wish it wasn’t this way, but it seems to be yet another cost of being a sinful person in a sinful world. Even the best things feel like bad things at times.

Advice to High School Graduates: ‘You Are Not Special’

On a spring day in 2012, Wellesley High School English teacher David McCullough, Jr., stepped onto the school’s football field, then covered in a sea of seniors dressed in identical caps and gowns. Clad in a blazer and striped tie, McCullough made his way to the podium, donned his reading glasses, and began his commencement speech. Nothing about the event seemed out of the ordinary. McCullough, after all, was participating in a ritual that happens hundreds of thousands of times across the United States each year. He had given graduation speeches before.

But compared to the countless other remarks given by comedians, journalists, and politicians that year, McCullough’s speech stood out for its blunt, four-word message: “You are not special.”

Kirsten Powers: Liberals’ Dark Ages

Welcome to the Dark Ages, Part II. We have slipped into an age of un-enlightenment where you fall in line behind the mob or face the consequences.

How ironic that the persecutors this time around are the so-called intellectuals. They claim to be liberal while behaving as anything but. The touchstone of liberalism is tolerance of differing ideas. Yet this mob exists to enforce conformity of thought and to delegitimize any dissent from its sanctioned worldview. Intolerance is its calling card.

Waving His Wand at ‘Beowulf’

There’s more to J. R. R. Tolkien than wizards and hobbits. The author of “The Lord of the Rings” and “The Hobbit” was also an Oxford University professor specializing in languages like Old Norse and Old English.

“Beowulf” was an early love, and a kind of Rosetta Stone to his creative work. His study of the poem, which he called “this greatest of the surviving works of ancient English poetic art,” informed his thinking about myth and language.