The Hunger Games Movie Night

If you're like me, you're eager for anything to do. So check this out: Lionsgate is running a free series of movie nights, starting with a showing of The Hunger Games tonight.

I posted a very short review of the movie back in 2012.

You can add to Lionsgate's donation to the Will Rogers Motion Picture Pioneers Foundation to support out-of-work theater employees.

You can also buy a special snack pack with free shipping from Snack Nation and Popcornopolis will have a movie night offer and donate 10% of sales to the Will Rogers Motion Picture Pioneers Foundation.

ETA additional details on Popcornopolis offer:

Popcornopolis knows you can’t have a movie night without popcorn, so they are also offering consumers a special promotion as well

Movie lovers can shop www.popcornopolis.com with promo code MOVIENIGHT for 15% off + Free Shipping! In addition, Popcornopolis is proud to donate 10% of all MovieNight sales back to the Will Rogers Foundation to assist theater employees.

 

🍿 Share your #LionsgateLIVE movie night with us using @popcornopolis and #popcornopolis

So let's enjoy a night at the movies!

Enjoy a night at the movies with Lionsgate, and your friends and family!

Join us for a free screening event of THE HUNGER GAMES on YouTube Live this Friday, April 17 at 9pm ET / 6pm PT.

Watch-along and engage in the conversation online using #LionsgateLive.

Stay tuned for DIRTY DANCING on April 24, LA LA LAND on May 1, and JOHN WICK on May 8!

THE HUNGER GAMES ON LIONSGATE LIVE – FRIDAY, APRIL 17 AT 9PM ET / 6PM PT

Official Website | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube | #LionsgateLive

Every year in the ruins of what was once North America, the evil Capitol of the nation of Panem forces each of its twelve districts to send a teenage boy and girl to compete in the Hunger Games.  A twisted punishment for a past uprising and an ongoing government intimidation tactic, The Hunger Games are a nationally televised event in which "Tributes" must fight with one another until one survivor remains.

Pitted against highly-trained Tributes who have prepared for these Games their entire lives, Katniss is forced to rely upon her sharp instincts as well as the mentorship of drunken former victor Haymitch Abernathy.  If she's ever to return home to District 12, Katniss must make impossible choices in the arena that weigh survival against humanity and life against love.

The Hunger Games is directed by Gary Ross, with a screenplay by Gary Ross and Suzanne Collins and Billy Ray, and produced by Nina Jacobson's Color Force in tandem with producer Jon Kilik. Suzanne Collins' best-selling novel, the first in a trilogy published by Scholastic that has over 23.5 million copies in print in the United States alone, has developed a massive global following. It has spent more than 160 consecutive weeks/more than three consecutive years to date on The New York Times bestseller list since its publication in September 2008, and has also appeared consistently on USA Today and Publishers Weekly bestseller lists.

Starring Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, Liam Hemsworth, Woody Harrelson, Elizabeth Banks, Donald Sutherland, Stanley Tucci, Lenny Kravitz, Willow Shields.

Rated PG-13

Movie Monday: BlacKkKlansman

BlacKkKlansman is the story of Ron Stallworth, a black police officer who goes undercover to join the KKK. He does this by talking to Klan members on the phone, while fellow (white) detective Flip goes to meet with them in person.

John David Washington shines as Stallworth. He gets across the character's earnest belief in the system, which simultaneously exists with his frustration when confronted by the racists and other bad apples on the force. He's a character who is sometimes fierce and sometimes fearful, but always believable. He plays especially well off of Adam Driver, particularly in scenes where Flip confronts his own heritage as a Jewish man.

BlacKkKlansman is based on the memoir BLACK KLANSMAN by Ron Stallworth and it takes many liberties to make the story more cinematic. After all, a cop story needs shots being fired and an explosion.

I think the best change is that the movie adds women to the story. Laura Harrier plays Patrice, a militant young woman who organizes campus speaking events and marches and believes the police can never be trusted. She's based on actual women who worked with the Black Panthers and other radical groups. She's intense, but can also slow down and discuss which films and stars she likes best. On the opposite side, a woman is added to the Klan group as well, a wife whose efforts to host go unappreciated. It's an excellent portrait of how these women get wrapped up in supporting and championing a cause that sees them as second-class citizens.



By turns, BlacKkKlansman is hilarious, exciting, and a punch to the gut. I was crying by the time I left the theater, due to Spike Lee's effortless connection of the events of the past to the ones of the present. He's a masterful filmmaker and he's made a movie that's both an entertaining summer comedy-thriller and a haunting piece of art. I thoroughly recommend going to see it, or renting it once it is available on video.

Movie Monday: The Dark Tower

One of my favorite book series is Stephen King's The Dark Tower. It isn't a perfect series. There are innumerable continuity errors and the last three books were clearly rushed. But they're weird in the most wonderful way, and I love every one of the main characters: Roland, Eddie, Susannah, Jake, (and Oy).

Thus, the movie adaptation of The Dark Tower had a lot to live up to. It had great source material, a built-in excuse for why things weren't the same as the book, and excellent casting.

Reviews had me worried and lowered my expectations. I think that might've helped the movie. It is a nice breezy length, explaining the basics and getting down to business. In this turn of the wheel, Jake (Tom Taylor) is a troubled young man in modern New York who dreams of kids being used to power a machine attacking the Dark Tower. He follows the clues in his dreams to find a gate to Mid-World, where he finds the gunslinger Roland (Idris Elba). Roland is the man he needs to fight the Man in Black (Matthew McConaughey); however, Roland is more interested in revenge than protecting the Dark Tower.

McConaughey is a delight as the menacing Man in Black and I thought he captured the spirit of the character well. I think Elba is brilliant casting for Roland, but he felt somewhat lacking in the intensity needed. At the same time, he is playing a less obsessive (in some ways) version of Roland. Taylor holds his own against them quite well and honestly impressed me. Jake's character changes the most, but I was sold on this kid as haunted and driven. I only wish we'd gotten more of him learning to be a gunslinger, especially as he ends up a 'damsel' in distress several times.

The Dark Tower is a fun fantasy movie with a few cool action scenes and a touching father-son relationship that develops through the course of the film. The movie misses some obvious chances for references to the book, but manages to weave in events from the first three books as well as a wealth of Easter Eggs. It's not everything I hoped and dreamed for, but neither is it a disaster. It's a start. If they do continue it with a TV series, I can't wait to see Eddie and Susannah and I hope this Roland and Jake return.

Movie Monday: King Arthur: Legend of the Sword

I am a massive geek for everything to do with the Matter of Britain, so it was a foregone conclusion I'd go to see King Arthur: Legend of the Sword. Getting to see an early screening at the local AMC was a bonus.

I wasn't sure about Guy Ritchie doing King Arthur, since his focus tends to be fast-talking criminal sorts and hyperkinetic action. I found, however, that his style meshed well with the subject. His King Arthur does grow up a fast-talking criminal, in the manner of an ambitious boy who grew up with nothing. There are many moments of gloriously daffy banter, and many montages set to hard-driving music that keep the epic story moving along swiftly.

Let me tell you, I'm not one who usually notices scores, but I am buying this soundtrack. It's percussive, hooky, and will get your pulse pumping.



Charlie Hunnam is a good fit for Arthur. He's got a natural confidence that meshes well with leadership roles. He also seems very grounded, which makes him a great foil for the theatrics of the villain King Vortigern, played by Jude Law. I think Law was having a great deal of fun playing a ruthless, cruel man who would nonetheless like to believe that his people love as well as fear him. There's a nice touch of vulnerability to his performance. I honestly wish they shared more scenes.

The supporting cast is also quite game, including the always fantastic Djimon Hounsou, although I wish the story involved more women. Neither of the most famous women of King Arthur legend make an appearance in Legend of the Sword. There are clear hooks for a sequel, but surely there was room for Guinevere or Morgan to make an appearance? (For trivia buffs, Katie McGrath played Morgana in BBC's Merlin and has a small role in this film.) The mage is cool, and Astrid Bergès-Frisbey plays not-quite-human very well, but I'd have loved more women as main characters.

This is not a serious take on the legend, nor one that plays true to the most common tales. But it is a fun movie, and one that understands the heart of the story.  King Arthur brings all parts of society together, and ushers in a rule of equality and respect. That's a bit of escapism I can get behind.

King Arthur: Legend of the Sword opens May 11.

Movie Monday: Logan

As a superhero movie fan, I couldn't resist going out opening weekend to see the final X-Men movie featuring Hugh Jackman as Wolverine and Patrick Stewart as Professor Xavier.

Logan is set in the future of 2029, where many mutants have died off and none are being born. Tired of his long life and poisoned from the inside, Logan is working as a chauffeur across the Mexico-Texas border to provide from himself and the aging Professor X. Age is interacting with Charles' telepathic powers in deadly ways; when he has a seizure, everyone around freezes in pain. But Logan can't abandon the man who has been like a father to him.

Of course, a wrench has to be thrown into the works. That wrench is Laura, or X-23, an eleven-year-old mutant with suspiciously familiar powers being tracked down by government goons.

Don't go into Logan expecting slick bombast. James Mangold has taken clear inspiration from westerns, most obviously the classic Shane. It's an elegiac film, albeit one that does have plenty of brutal action scenes and sprinklings of humor. Since Deadpool proved to Fox that R-rated superhero films can make buckets of money, Logan leans into its higher rating. The violence is bloody and the language is salty.

I enjoyed seeing two of my favorite characters playing off of each other, and Dafne Keen as Laura works perfectly in the mix. She's an adorable ball of rage with flowered sunglasses who spends over half the movie communicating only in grunts. When she does finally speak, she still accompanies it with a punch to help Logan get over his self-pity. (And let me say that I appreciate Logan's linguistic efforts. Characters born in Mexico speak Spanish.)

 Logan is a moving film about the regrets of the past and the hopes of the future. It also happens to feature Wolverine vs. Wolverine action, for the best of both worlds. I don't think fans of these characters will be disappointed.

Movie Monday: Rogue One

I've been excited about Rogue One coming out, although not as excited as I would be for Episode VIII. However, I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed this side adventure.

Jyn (Felicity Jones) is the daughter of weapons designer for the Empire. He doesn't believe in the cause, but it's build or die. His brief rebellion did manage to get his daughter out of the control of the Empire, so they couldn't use her as a hostage against him. When he convinces a pilot to defect with news of the Death Star, the Rebel Alliance contacts Jyn because she can help them confirm the tale.

What follows is a story that ranges over several planets as a rag-tag team of fighters attempts to prove that the Death Star exists and can be stopped.

While The Force Awakens assembled a cast of mostly unknown actors, Rogue One goes for more familiar faces like Diego Luna, Forest Whitaker, and Donnie Yen. I like those actors, and don't think their higher profile distracted from their story. They faded into their roles quite well. I did enjoy that Rogue One allowed the actors to keep their accents instead of having everyone use an American or English accent.

Rogue One is darker than most Star Wars movies. It shows the side of the Rebel Alliance that veers into terrorist attacks. And the ending is more hopeful than happy. While my dad and I enjoyed the film together, Rogue One is not the best choice for families with smaller children. I don't think it's inappropriate for kids; just be prepared for potential discussion (or calming down upset kiddos) afterward. I think the ending fit the film, but it definitely takes a new tone for the universe. This one is more Empire than Return of the Jedi.

I've seen mixed reviews online, but both my dad and I enjoyed Rogue One. As always, I believe the best way to make a decision is to see something for yourself.

Movie Monday: We Are X

X Japan is one of the founding groups of the Japanese visual kei genre (arguably the founding group) and have attained international success in their three decades as a band. They have a unique sound that mixes speed metal with pop balladry, driven by the skills of band leader, song writer, drummer, and pianist Yoshiki.

Yet like many foreign bands, especially those that don't sing in English, they've never found mainstream success in the US.

We Are X is a British documentary framed by X Japan's concert at Madison Square Garden on October 11, 2014. It starts with a glimpse of the successful concert, then delves into how the band got there. Yoshiki remains the focus, but each band member gets some time in the spotlight (except for new guitarist Sugizo). Most of the strife facing the band in We Are X is Yoshiki's health problems, including asthma, a torn ligament, tendonitis, and more. It is only toward the end that the deaths of lead guitarist hide and former bassist Taiji are addressed.

There's very little of X Japan's actual music in We Are X. If you aren't a fan, don't expect to get a real sense of their sound, as only tiny snippets are ever played. (And no snippets of my favorite song, "Silent Jealousy".) In fact, a sense of X Japan at all is hard to grasp. For all the focus on Yoshiki, he is a reticent subject in interviews. He can be poetic about his musical journey, but many questions get simple, intriguing answers that he refuses to give a follow up on. (The reason Taiji was fired remains a secret.)

There are some moments of intrigue that will draw viewers in, such as the decade the vocalist Toshi spent in a cult that brainwashed him to believe X Japan's music was demonic. This moment is teased early in We Are X, then more fully explored in the section about Toshi.

I found We Are X to be a frustrating documentary, too shallow for fans and too disjointed for newcomers. The chronology is all over the place, and not much is done to help viewers sort out the timelines or keep the various personalities straight. Stan Lee, Gene Simmons, and Marilyn Manson are all introduced as Yoshiki's fans and American champions of the band, but there's no insight given into what brought them into X Japan's orbit.

The documentary is beautifully shot and edited, with a sense of style more often seen in art films. Archival footage of the band is used to show their more colorful years, and it is genuinely affecting to see lingering close-ups of hide in his last live performance with the band in 1997. There is plenty within We Are X to encourage viewers to explore more deeply into the band's history and discography.

This is a documentary that shows even without sex and drugs, rock n' roll can take a physical and mental toll on musicians. It also explores the question of how such a talented, successful band can fail to break into the American market. Many interviewed scorn America's closemindedness to music not in English; X Japan just laments their inability to learn how to sing in English natively.

X Japan is a fascinating band that deserved a feature documentary. I wanted more from We Are X, and I'm not sure if my high expectations doomed my watching experience from the very beginning. Still, I'm glad it got made and that it's popularity at Sundance has helped bring more attention to X Japan.

Movie Monday: War Dogs

If asked to guess what the director of the Hangover trilogy's follow-up project would be, I wouldn't have guessed it would be a political satire about war profiteers and the way the US government enables them.

Miles Teller stars as David Packouz, a masseuse who is drawn to the glamorous life of arms dealing by his childhood friend Efraim Diveroli (Jonah Hill). The story of War Dogs is based on the Rolling Stone article "The Stoner Arms Dealers" by Guy Lawson and is generally more friendly to David than Efraim. Efraim is portrayed as a sociopath with a hilariously fake, creepy giggle. (Hill's giggle made my theater laugh every time.)

It's a fascinating story, and enough to carry much of the movie. The US government outsourced many contracts for the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, giving small outlets a chance to make big money, including two twentysomethings who didn't know anything. To underbid genuine contractors, all they had to do was make shady deals with people the government couldn't work with directly.

Todd Phillips does a great job pointing out how outrageous it is, including the fact that the real Packouz and Diveroli will soon be eligible to sale arms again. At the same time, he's clearly very impressed with two dudes who managed to make a ton of money (unethically).

Teller and Hill do great work, as usual, and Bradley Cooper is strong in a small role as a real-deal arms dealer. I was impressed by Ana de Armas as Iz, David's wife. She gets the role of the nag who harshes David's buzz, but Armas does a great job of selling her vulnerability. She's a woman with a kid to protect, who wants to know that she can trust her husband far more than she wants a fancy apartment.

Phillips injects a great deal of flashy style into the proceedings, keeping the movie rolling along even when there's exposition about just how arms deals work. He even goes for an arty ambiguous ending. War Dogs is a fun movie most of the time, but it is also a sobering one.

Movie Monday: Morgan

Morgan is the first film directed by Luke Scott, the son of legendary director Ridley Scott. It is a science-fiction thriller, much like his father is known for. It isn't devoid of style, but it felt very direct. What symbolism is present on-screen served only to make the final turn the story takes obvious. But while Morgan isn't the introduction of a brilliant new voice, it is a solidly entertaining flick.

Anna Taylor-Joy stars as the eponymous character opposite Kate Mara as Lee Weathers, a risk-management consultant. Anna Taylor-Joy gave a knockout performance that made it clear she's a future star in The Witch. Morgan is a more closed off character, tasked with being magnetic and childlike and inhuman and creepy and feminine yet androgynous. It's a lot to try to convey through a character whose emotions are internalized until they explode. I definitely think Taylor-Joy seemed to have more fun when Morgan was out of control.

Mara, however, is entirely fantastic as the cold, professional Lee. Most of the other characters resent her for encroaching on their project, which is now in jeopardy. Morgan, an artificial human, is a potential product line for the company. But she's attacked one of her handlers (Jennifer Jason Leigh), and now the company must assess whether she's viable or not. Lee hasn't raised Morgan, and seems disturbed by how the researchers have humanized her. Meanwhile, it seems disturbing to the viewer how easily Lee can dehumanizing something that looks human and appears to have human reactions.

The cast is a parade of familiar faces for science fiction fans, including Rose Leslie, Toby Jones, Michelle Yeoh, and Brian Cox, among others. It's a small cast, but everyone does good work. You can feel how fervently most of them care for Morgan, while only a few have held themselves objective enough to see Morgan's bursts of temper as a very bad sign.

The story won't surprise any long-time science fiction fans. Morgan doesn't bring much to meditations of what does or doesn't make us human. But it offers some well-choreographed mayhem and more than a few powerful performances, which is enough for me. It's a fun way to take a break on a hot summer afternoon.

(I know it is officially fall, but it still feels like summer where I am.)

Movie Monday: Billionaire Ransom

Billionaire Ransom is a wonderfully ridiculous film that mostly stars actors from the CW.

Kyle (Jeremy Sumpter) meets Amy (Phoebe Tonkin) at a party where they both get wasted and decide to leave together. He wrecks the car and then leaves the site of the crash without checking whether she's all right. This makes things very awkward when they get sent to the same tiny reform school on a Scottish island.

Fortunately, the school teaches everyone survival skills, which the spoiled scions will need when a trio of mercenaries attacks the school to kidnap the kids for a billion dollar ransom.

The group of students and teachers is international, but Billionaire Ransom makes the odd choice to have Sumpter speak with an American accent. (Sebastian Koch, who plays his father, doesn't.) Sumpter has obviously been acting since he was a child, making his big break in Peter Pan. If I didn't know that, I might think this was his first film due to the strangeness of his line readings. Letting him keep his accent might have helped.

Despite her prominence in the marketing materials, Phoebe Tonkin is mostly on hand to be a damsel in distress. (She does get one cool, if gory, action scene.) The focus is weighted much more towards Kyle than Amy.

As goofy as Billionaire Ransom is, I thought the growing camaraderie between the rich kids was done well and seeing them battle the mercenaries was fun. One of the mercenaries is even portrayed somewhat sympathetically, although the other two are cartoonishly evil. Ed Westwick, at least, gives good Eurotrash.

I'm not going to convince you that Billionaire Ransom is a good movie, but luckily it isn't even aiming for that status. What it wants to be is a fun movie, one that you want to watch late at night with some snacks and a few friends to unwind for the weekend. It accomplishes that just fine.

Movie Monday: Hell or High Water

I had high hopes for this bank robbers film set in West Texas. Toby Howard (Chris Pine) and Tanner Howard (Ben Foster) are robbing branches of Texas Midlands Bank to get the money to pay off the reverse mortgage on their recently deceased mother's ranch. All they want is $43,000, so they can make low pressure robberies that don't even open the vault.

Hell or High Water follows both the brothers and their biggest obstacle: two Texas Rangers, played by Jeff Bridges and Gil Birmingham. All they have to do is narrow it down to which branch of Texas Midlands Bank will be hit next.

I enjoyed the way the story twisted and turned, revealing more about the brothers' motivation and master plan as well as the work friendship between the Rangers. Both sets of partners are antagonistic but fond.

West Texas is a very different place from where I live in Texas, but I know oil workers and they are hurting right now. Combined with the collapse of the housing market, many people have lost their homes. It's easy to see why even a lawyer might want to stick it to the banks, or why a waitress might be won over by a large tip.

Yet something about Hell or High Water left me cold, despite the solid story and performances. It's perhaps too slick, and needs to take a bit of gritty inspiration from its setting. It's a good movie, but more one that might catch your attention when it comes on cable.  But there's some missing element that keeps me from calling it great.

Movie Monday: Pete's Dragon

Pete's Dragon in 1977

The 1977 Pete's Dragon was my sister's absolute favorite movie when we were growing up. That meant that I hated it on principle and threw a fit every time she made me watch it. (I would get my revenge with The Lion King, which I think we can all agree is the superior movie.)

When I got a chance to see the new version with a Q&A after with writer-director David Lowery I decided to go for it, if only to taunt my sister with it. (All she really cared about when I told her was if it would break her Pete's Dragon-loving heart.)

The remake has very little in common with the original, aside from being about a young orphan named Pete who is companions with a dragon named Elliot who is sometimes invisible. This has its upsides and downsides. There's little point in a remake that simply retreads the original. At the same time, it feels a bit silly to even call this movie a remake.

The new Pete's Dragon starts with a rather wrenching car wreck that leaves Pete an orphan. The camera stays focused on Pete during the actual wreck, but it is still a harrowing sequence. Young Pete is left stranded in the woods near Millhaven, Oregon. His only companionship for the next several years is Elliot, the dragon who helps him survive. While this avoids comparison with the original, it invites comparison to both Tarzan and the Jungle Book, both of which had new movie versions come out this year.

Pete returns to civilization when a logging operation brings people close enough for him to encounter a kindly park ranger, Grace (Bryce Dallas Howard). What follows is a fairly predictable tale of finding family that builds up to some explosions for the finish. The story feels very by the book.

However, Pete's Dragon isn't devoid of flair. The film was shot in New Zealand, and the sweeping vistas of endless green forests make a silent but powerful case for the movie's environmental message. The soundtrack might not have the inimitable Helen Reddy, but it does have a lovely folk tune woven throughout that will worm its way into your head. The cast is game, from Wes Bentley and Karl Urban playing two brothers at odds to Robert Redford as Grace's father. Oakes Fegley (Pete) and Oona Lawrence (Natalie, a new friend) both do a wonderful job of interacting with Elliot and making it seem as if a dragon were really on set.

Don't go into Pete's Dragon expecting a retread, but don't go in expecting something staggeringly original either. Go in expecting a beautiful film with strong performances that is suitable for most of the family. (Some sequences might be intense for very young children.) I don't think my sister will be heartbroken.

Movie Monday: The Hunt for the Wilderpeople

I've seen a lot of great movies this year, because it has been a great year for film. One of The Lobster, Swiss Army Man, and Hunt for the Wilderpeople is the best movie I've seen so far, but each is so different that it is hard to choose.  

Hunt for the Wilderpeople, at its heart, is a story about finding family through difficult journeys. That schmaltzy sentiment hardly seems cheesy at all when it comes in the story of a man (Sam Neill) and boy (Julian Dennison) who become the subjects of a manhunt after they're accidentally stuck in the bush for six weeks.

Ricky Baker has gone from foster home to foster home, and this is the end of the line for him. But Aunt Bella (Rima Te Wiata) has created a welcoming, loving home, and gives him the space he needs to decide to stay (in between hunting pigs with the help of her dog). When she dies, Ricky doesn't want to leave, but social services won't leave him with Bella's partner Herc -- and the asocial Herc just wants to go into the bush and escape from civilization for awhile. We all know the odd couple of Ricky and Herc will love each other by the end, but how they get there is a singularly offbeat journey.

The scenery of New Zealand, of course, makes for beautiful cinematography. Taika Waititi (director and writer of the adaptation) doesn't rest on that beauty. He adds danger, both natural and human, and plenty of fun. He has a way with crafting narratives that are funny even if you aren't laughing out loud every other moment. (Not that there aren't parts that will crack you up.) There's just an ineffable comic sensibility.

Hunt for the Wilderpeople isn't afraid to be sad or to touch on the serious issues faced by kids in the foster system. It gets dark. That only makes the light more exuberant. It's hard, like Ricky finds, not to get caught up in the rush.

Movie Monday: NERVE

NERVE is a new teen technological thriller opening this Wednesday, July 27th. Thanks to the ever trusty Alamo Drafthouse, I was able to attend an early showing. I mostly wanted to see it since Dave Franco plays the male lead, _ian_.  (Who I shall now call Ian instead of stylizing it like the screenname it is.)

I didn't know this, but NERVE is actually based on a book by Jeanne Ryan. I haven't read it, but I might pick it up because screenwriter Jessica Sharzer obviously had good material to work with. The technology is more reasonable than many similar thrillers -- phrases like 'open source,' 'dark web,' and more are actually used in the correct manner.

NERVE is a game. You can play for free or pay to watch. Players win by completing dares from the watchers in the time given and move up the ranks by gaining more watchers as they complete riskier dares for more and more money. NERVE scrapes details from players' social media profiles, so watchers can tailor dares to their fears: talking to boys, heights, and more.

I appreciated that NERVE didn't focus on bad things happening to players on-screen. This isn't about seeing a bunch of teens get maimed. It's about social pressure, how much access people can gain to your life through social media, and how making risky decisions can escalate after you overcome previous challenges. I also appreciated that the main characters, like Vee (Emma Roberts), were essentially good people who are doing their best to be ethical even if it goes against the game. I particularly liked how NERVE wove a secondary character throughout the story, building well to the reveal of his true character at a climatic moment. This is a thriller that grounds its story in character.

(Okay, I'll also mention that I loved that Vee's best friend Tommy (Miles Heizer) clearly has a crush on her, but doesn't turn against her when she starts falling for Ian even though he's clearly hurt. He keeps working to help her out, because they're friends. There are just so many good people in this story about how evil people can be when they don't have to face the consequences.)

Vee isn't the type to be a player, or so all her friends say. She can't even hit accept for the school she wants to go to, because she's afraid of her mother's reaction. (Juliette Lewis plays her mother, doing good work in a minor role.) Her brother died a few years ago, and her mother reacted by becoming smothering. But after her best friend accidentally humiliates her in public, Vee is ready to take control of her own life -- by letting complete strangers tell her what to do. Hey, she's a teenager.

NERVE is a fun little thriller with a cool look and winning characters. It wears its moral on its sleeve, but I think the earnestness works for it. Sometimes it is nice to watch a thriller with a heart instead of one that revels in nastiness. There's a place for both.

Movie Monday: Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping

I find The Lonely Island hilarious. Andy Samberg, Jorma Taccone, and Akiva Schaffer are amazing at combining music and comedy. Their latest venture is a mockumentary about Connor4Real, a rapper who hit it big with trio The Style Boiz and then his first solo record. Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping charts the release of Connor's sophomore album and it's subsequent failure. This forces Connor to all sorts of crazy shenanigans to get back on top, before perhaps admitting that he's made some mistakes.

Lots of the usual suspects like SNL alums Bill Hader and Maya Rudolph make an appearance. It's also chock full of real musicians like Nas, Seal, and Justin Timberlake (as an intense chef). The funny people help land the jokes and the musicians help give the silliness of Popstar a sense of reality.

The movie had me hooked from the opening music number, "I'm So Humble (feat. Adam Levine)," which closes with an interview with Mariah Carey stating how much she relates to the song. The jokes in and around the song both hit. I think that's the musical highlight of Popstar, even though there's plenty of humor in the songs to come. (Including Connor's way-too-late anthem in support of gay marriage.)



Samberg has been developing his acting chops on Brooklyn Nine-Nine, and his improved acting serves him well. He's more at ease inhabiting a character instead of over-emphasizing the punchline. Taccone is great as the one friend who has stood by him in a see of yes men and just wants to see his friends back together. Schaffer is hilariously intense as his ex-friend who pretends to like the farm he's ended up on.

The jokes in Popstar are broad, but many of them hit. It's a classic tale of hubris and friendship, wrapped up in a gloriously ridiculous package. The date for the video release doesn't seem to be finalized yet, but I recommend Popstar to any fan of The Lonely Island.

Movie Monday: Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates

Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates has an actual credits sequence at the beginning, scenes of awesome parties unfolding to an upbeat song.  It's not long before we learn how each of those parties went wrong when Mike (Adam Devine) and Dave (Zac Efron) took it too far.

Now, their sister's destination wedding is upon them and their family has given them an ultimatum: bring dates too keep them under control.  Being gentleman of a certain age, Mike and Dave turn to Craigslist, where their posting for a free trip to Hawaii goes viral.

Cue the girls: Tatiana (Aubrey Plaza) and Alice (Anna Kendrick).  They aren't the good girls Mike and Dave are looking for, but they're willing to fake it, especially since Alice needs a vacation after being left at the altar.

Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates isn't built on surprises.  It's a comedy that leans hard on the charm of its cast as they bumble through various misadventures.  It's a good thing the cast can take it.  I particularly liked Sugar Lyn Beard as Jeanie Stangle, the younger sister.  She's soft-spoken and sweet, but that doesn't mean nothing gets to her.  Sam Richardson gets in an awesome moment as her possibly boring fiance Eric.

If you enjoy comedic shenanigans where people get (non-fatally) mangled and families eventually come together because they love each other, you'll enjoy Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates.  The romance between Alice and Dave is a sweet counterpoint to the cruder elements of the movie, and I kind of wish the end hadn't back off on Tatiana and Mike never, ever getting together.

Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates will be released this Friday, July 8.

Movie Monday: Love and Friendship

What a scrumptious delight of a movie!  Love and Friendship adapts Jane Austen's juvenile novella, "Lady Susan."  (Not "Love and Freindship" [sic].)  I'd wanted to see it anyway, but one of my project managers raved about how good it was.  It wasn't showing at the Alamo, but I enlisted a friend and drove across town to a Cinemark.  As it turned out, she'd seen it last weekend but was quite willing to see it again.

(Side note: This Cinemark has installed giant recliner seats, which are comfortable.  However, they can't fit very many in the theater.  We ended up having to get front row side seats, from which you could barely see the screen.  If they'd switched the walkway and front row it might've been okay.  Seriously terrible design.  But the movie was great!)

Kate Beckinsale sinks her teeth into the role of Lady Susan.  I've mostly seen her in action movies, so I had no clue she had this in her.  Lady Susan is a tough character to play - she's a terrible person, but one you end up rooting for because she's the protagonist.  But Beckinsale plays her to a tee, the way she can perceive any situation in her favor and twist the truth so sprightly.  And, well, she's does have a point.  She's a penniless widow with a daughter who needs a secure future.  She's playing the game.  She's just more underhanded about it than Austen's future, more famous heroines.

The plot is slight, but that works for a movie.  (After all, many of Austen's other works require a miniseries to be told well.)  There's a decent-sized cast, but everyone is clearly introduced with title cards.  And what a cast!  Chloe Sevigny is hilarious as Lady Susan's equally amoral best friend, a married American on the outs with her husband.  Tom Bennett steals the show as the rather dim Sir James Martin.  Love and Friendship stops dead two or three times to let him babble on, and the movie is better for it.  His digression on the twelve commandments is a bauble of comic genius.

Love and Friendship also does a good job of presenting the complicated morality of the story.  Lady Susan's sister-in-law and her parents are concerned that Lady Susan is abusing her daughter.  Her daughter does blossom when free of her mother's plans to marry her off, but seems to generally feel that her mother showed her love the way she knew how.

It does have some faults.  "Lady Susan" is an epistolary novella, and it shows.  A scene will start, then cut to Susan telling her friend what happened.  Beckinsale sells it, but sometimes it might've been nice to actually see the plot unfold.

You don't have to be an Austen fan to enjoy Love and Friendship.  You just have to be a fan of dry humor and the comedy of a group of good people running into someone who is shockingly terrible.

Movie Monday: X-Men: Apocalypse

I had a great time watching X-Men: Apocalypse and want to see it again.  It was big and silly, and it left a smile on my face.

The movie has too many plotlines to let them all breathe as they should, but I can't think of one I'd want to cut.  Instead, I want to spend more time with these characters - especially young Jean Grey, Cyclops, Nightcrawler, and Storm.  All manage to get standout moments against the established cast members.

Quicksilver, as in X-Men: Days of Future Past has one of the coolest scenes in the movie.  But my favorite character moment might be Professor X showing what makes him so dangerous.  I've enjoyed James McAvoy's performance, but I think this is the first time his Charles Xavier gets to feel dangerous.

From what I've read of critical reviews, X-Men: Apocalypse isn't getting the love of X-Men: First Class, much less Days of Future Past. I have to disagree with the critics.  This isn't a smart movie, sure, but it is one that gets what makes comics fun and has an appealing cast of characters.  It's also not insultingly dumb.

I must admit, I'd love another movie with the older cast to show what has changed due to Days of Future Past, but I can definitely live with these younger versions.  I'm hoping for more fun movies in the series to come.  Maybe we'll even see Deadpool in the main continuity one day.

Movie Monday: Captain America: Civil War

The newest movie in the Marvel Cinematic Universe is an adaptation of the (mostly hated) comics event Civil War.  However, the central issue of the comics - registration - doesn't quite work in a world where everyone knows who the superheroes are.  Luckily, Captain America: Civil War finds another issue to divide our heroes: accountability.

The Avengers are US-based group that answer to no governments and cross borders with impunity.  What, or who, gives them the right to superhero wherever they want, especially when superhero battles tend to damage infrastructure and result in casualties?

Unfortunately, the issue comes to a head just as Captain America's old pal Bucky is accused of a terrorist act.

There are a lot of moving parts in Captain America: Civil War, including new villains (Daniel Brühl as Baron Zemo) and new heroes (Chadwick Boseman as T'Challa, Tom Holland as Spider-Man).  The new actors acquit themselves well.  Brühl has the advantage over many Marvel villains in that he isn't trying to act through a thick mask of makeup.  Boseman gets a showcase emotional arc, and he plays it to the hilt.  Holland brings the energy and humor Peter Parker needs in his brief appearances.  I'm eager to see both Black Panther and Spider-Man: Homecoming now.

Then there's all the returning heroes.  Captain America. Iron Man. Falcon. Black Widow. Scarlet Witch. Vision. Hawkeye. War Machine. Ant-Man.  If you have not seen any of the previous Marvel Cinematic Universe movies, this is not the place to start.  Captain America: Civil War builds off the character arcs of the previous Captain America movie (The Winter Soldier) in addition to Avengers: Age of Ultron.  This movie expects you to know who these people are.  It has too much to do to re-introduce old characters.

If you do know these characters, it is a crazy ride.  There are plenty of serious moments in this battle of friend against friend, but there's also a healthy dose of humor and plenty of inspired action scenes.  The story is grim, but Captain America: Civil War never forgets that superheroes are fun.

Movie Monday: The Huntsman: Winter's War

I'll be honest: I fell asleep during Snow White and the Huntsman because I was so bored.  I only saw the beginning and end of the movie.  I mostly found it a waste of some nice costumes and Charlize Theron chewing the scenery as the villain.  When I got a chance to see The Huntsman: Winter's War for free at Alamo Drafthouse, I decided to go see it despite my apathy for the previous movie.

The Huntsman: Winter's War starts before the first movie, when the eponymous Huntsman Eric was just a child.  He was kidnapped by the Freya (Emily Blunt), Ravenna's younger sister, along with many other children.  She decided to raise an army free of love after her lover murdered her daughter.  Eric, of course, breaks the rule and falls in love with Sarah (Jessica Chastain), the dead wife of the first movie.  The first thirty minutes or so cover their courtship and her death.

The movie then skips forward seven years and becomes a sequel to Snow White and the Huntsman. I know some disliked that Sam Clafin, who played the love interest, got to come back when Kristen Stewart didn't.  I found it more palatable in practice, because he shows up for a few minutes only to direct the Huntsman to find Ravenna's mirror, which Freya is searching for to boost her powers.

What follows is a quest to find the mirror.  Eric is accompanied by two dwarves, which becomes four dwarves when they meet two female dwarves on the way.  Entirely unsurprisingly, they also run into the still alive Sarah, who believes Eric left her to die and isn't too pleased he's off jauntily living his own life.  I thought these characters made for a fun ensemble.  Chris Hemsworth was quite mopey in the first movie, but here he gets to crack some jokes and play off of the comic dwarves.  Eric and Sarah's romance is perfunctory, but Chastain and Hemsworth manage more chemistry than Stewart and Hemsworth.

The Huntsman: Winter's War is cheesy, and could use far more of Charlize Theron's Ravenna, a performance that remains the highlight of the series.  But you don't need to see Snow White and the Huntsman first, and I found it an improvement overall due tot he greater use of humor and the wider range of female characters.  I also liked that the child soldiers weren't an entirely faceless crowd, nor entirely warped by their childhoods.  This is a fairy tale that offers redemption.