Fresh

Released:  August 24^th, 1994

Rated:  R

Distributor:  Miramax

Starring:  Sean Nelson, Giancarlo Esposito, Samuel L. Jackson, N’Bushe Wright

Directed by:  Boaz Yakin

Written by:  Boaz Yakin

Personal Bias Alert:  likes surprises, likes Giancarlo Esposito

7.5 of 10

            Fresh startles from beginning to end.  It’s an unusual story with an unusual protagonist:  a 12-year-old kid from New York City who’s already knee-deep in the drug business, but he’s neither a thug nor an idiot.  In fact, he’s a rather shrewd boy, and it’s easy to imagine how he got to the film’s starting point.  There was certainly some surveying, an evaluation of his environment and the possible exits routes, and a decision to go with the most consistent path.  That drugs happen to be his ticket out isn’t his fault; American society doesn’t give a poor African-American kid many viable options, and he handles his chosen occupation with such professionalism that any business owner would be impressed, not least of all the local drug kingpins that employ him.  Perhaps it’s this trademark approach that landed him the nickname Fresh, or maybe it’s just his young face.  Either way, his bosses see a bright future for the boy, but he envisions an even brighter one for himself.

            Sean Nelson, who couldn’t have been much older than his character when filming, pulls off Fresh’s self-confident intelligence without making him precocious.  It’s a fine line, but an imperative one for the film to get right.  For Fresh to live the way he does, he must be seen as an adult amongst adults, not a child tagging along.  His friend Chuckie (Luis Lantigua) falls well short of this line, and the film reveals how badly things can go for a kid in this world.  No, this isn’t the kind of movie that flinches.  The darkness of Fresh’s environment is on full display, made all the more disturbing by its reality, its lack of exaggeration.  This was New York City in the early ‘90s, with the minorities clustered to the side and left to bear the brunt of the raging crack epidemic.  Fresh’s involvement in the business doesn’t mean he approves of using drugs for reasons that become starkly clear, and this dichotomy is what drives the film to its unexpected conclusion.

            Where the film does end up going isn’t for me to reveal; that’s something best left for you to experience.  It’s remarkable, looking back, how you don’t see it coming.  The foreshadowing is staring you in the face, but there’s this boy there, too, in nearly every frame.  His soft face lowers your expectations a bit, making the film’s unraveling all the more thrilling.  However, it’d be wrong to say that the ending entirely makes sense.  It’s strays a bit from the rest of the film’s gritty realness, employing movie moments to make the whole thing work, but that’s a forgivable sin when you factor in how far Fresh takes you.  There has to be some hope at the end of all this grimness, and the world wasn’t exactly set up to give him a way out.  A bit of fancy at the end, as long as it continues to hold its character’s responsible for their actions, can serve as a kind of pointed catharsis.  It gives us a place we would like to get to, but also emphasizes how far we still need to go to get there.

            This is an impressively smart film for Boaz Yakin’s first outing as writer and director, but there are several small failings that gnaw away at the film’s greatness.   Most notable are some dreadful performances by the young cast members, who’s forced line delivery and lack of presence sticks out when compared to the superbly executed scenes between Nelson and the adult cast (which includes the likes of Samuel L. Jackson and Giancarlo Esposito).  The bare-bones editing is another major sign of Yakin’s freshness, feeling more in line with television’s churned out simplicity than with film’s more stylish approach.  Other small technicalities build on this lack of flair, making the film slightly stilted in a way that doesn’t enhance the overall tone.  With the exception of the kid acting, these aren’t major concerns, but having several off-kilter elements does slowly add up to a less-than-perfect film.

            In spite of these problems, Fresh is still well worth seeking out.  It’s got a true sense of existing in the real world, where outcomes for even a smart kid like Fresh could take you in radically different directions, and the mystery of where it’s all going is a thrilling one to see play out.

Other Notes:

Ø  I must give an animal abuse warning for those who are sensitive to such things.

Ø  The music was mixed rather loud in the Netflix version I was watching.

Ø  Even in this age of antiheros, Fresh is probably one of the youngest ones you can find.

Kingsman: The Secret Service

Released:  February 13^th, 2015

Rated:  currently unrated

Distributor:  20^th Century Fox

Starring:  Colin Firth, Taron Egerton, Samuel L. Jackson, Mark Strong, Michael Caine, Sofia Boutella

Directed by:  Matthew Vaughn

Written by:  Jane Goldman, Matthew Vaughn

Personal Bias Alert:  haven’t seen Kickass, not familiar with the comics

8.2 of 10

            This film is all about style.  Too often, a film’s style comes down to replicating whatever’s worked before, leading to the feeling of sameness that permeates nearly all genres of film.  Directors with a true voice exist (Wes Anderson, Terrence Malick, and the Wachowskis jump immediately to mind), but if successful, their inventions often become nothing more than the new norm.  That’s why it’s especially exciting to see work from someone like director Matthew Vaughn, who brings a uniquely humorous and violent voice to Kingsman:  The Secret Service but hasn’t hit it big enough to gain admiring replicators.

            Yes, Vaughn directed the successful return-to-form X-Men:  First Class, but in adhering to the lucrative series’ more weighty tone, his own playfulness was rightly tamped down.  So successful was the reboot that Vaughn was asked back to direct Days of Future Past, which he gave up to man the helm of the smaller but less restrictive Kingsman.  It just might prove to be a career-defining moment, as Kingsman delivers a mass appeal story with just the right amount of flourishes to become 2015’s first big hit with critics and audiences alike.

            Smattering together several familiar storylines, this coming-of-age spy riff follows the tryout of Eggsy Unwin (Taron Egerton) for the top-secret spy organization The Kingsman.  It’s an upper-crust British outfit following the Bond formula of slick suits and clever accessories that proves not very open to Eggsy’s lower class roughness.  The obvious chip on his shoulder is there, but Eggsy’s also smart enough to know that he can run with these guys.  It’s a deceptively difficult part that requires a balance of action, drama, and humor, and Egerton’s a major find.  For a relative newcomer, he seems at ease carrying this film and exudes a brash, bad boy charm that’s so perfectly Eggsy.

            The other ‘find,’ and what has drawn significantly more chatter throughout production, is the casting of Colin Firth as Eggsy’s mentor.  The former Mr. Darcy, stuttering King, and ABBA rocker might seem out of place in our current spy model of action-heavy leads, but Firth cuts a fitting silhouette as a dapper, old-school infiltrator.  That’s not to say that he doesn’t get his fair share of action (which he handles very well, thank you very much), it’s just not his method of choice.

            When Firth, Egerton, and others do break out the action, Vaughn pulls out all the stops to make it a raucously good time.  It’s violent, excellently choreographed, and smoothly filmed, so you refreshingly aren’t going to miss a single punch or slice.  However, there’s no nastiness to these scenes.  It’s more an embrace of violence as entertainment, an acknowledgement that we enjoy the idea of it more in the over-the-top, thrilling way that comics portray it than in the somber, gritty way that many films, even comic book films, are now leaning towards.  Yes, this is a comic book film itself, based off a recent series from Marvel-owned subsidiary Icon Comics, but this is an even more playful, and oddly more cheery, style of action than The Avengers or even Guardians of the Galaxy.  Trust me, when Firth whips out that umbrella, you’re in for a good time.

            Even with all this healthy levity, Vaughn and cowriter Jane Goldman still work in some scenes of needed drama.  They stick to some common plotlines, making the beginning portion seem a bit familiar, but once they up the stakes for Eggsy this film truly takes off.  Even the villain played by Samuel L. Jackson, who borders on hammy in the trailer, proves to be a remarkably solid mix of humor and menace, enhanced greatly by his elegant but deadly enforcer Gazelle (Sofia Boutella).

            A perfect film it is not, but Kingsman:  The Secret Service is so surprising in its entertainment that it’s hard not to scream its praises from the rooftop.  Here’s to hoping that this film’s greatness doesn’t get lost in the beginning of the year quagmire.

Other Notes:

Ø  I can’t imagine this film not getting an R rating from the MPAA.  It’s a rare blockbuster for adults.

Ø  Suits really do make guys look good.

Ø  Totally didn’t notice that was Mark Hamill.  Guess I have to turn in my Star Wars Nerd card.

Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014)

7 of 10

Personal Bias Alert:  This is my first Captain America movie, not a fan of blockbusters

            I can’t help but feel that my inexperience with the Marvel franchise has given me an unusual perspective on “Captain America:  The Winter Soldier.”  The lone film I’ve seen from the Marvel universe is “Iron Man.”  No Thor, Hulk, Avengers, or Captain America.  I also never read the comics, nor do I recall watching cartoons of any of these characters as a kid.  Here’s the rundown on my knowledge of Cap going into the film:  was a soldier in one of the world wars, the military made him into a super soldier, carries a shield, probably American.  This dearth of knowledge made me very concerned that I would get lost watching “The Winter Soldier,” but thanks to its clear storytelling my worries were unfounded.

            Captain America/Steve Rodgers (Chris Evans) starts this film at an oddly quiet time in his life.  Work has slowed, and he has enough time to start mulling over the direction his life has taken.  The people he grew up with are dead, and he’s having trouble fitting into the modern age.  Cap’s actually quite melancholy here.  He seems unable to let go of his past life, which gives newbies like me some time to get filled in on his story.  More importantly, he’s struggling with his growing disillusionment with SHIELD, which is exacerbated when Nick Furry (Samuel L. Jackson) shows him their latest creation.  It’s a trio of massive aircraft carriers designed to eliminate people who might be future threats.  Cap brings up some obvious moral problems (the people being killed haven’t actually done anything yet) and storms off, seemingly ready to quit.

            Of course, there’s no getting out that easy.  Furry is attacked by a mysterious hitman named the Winter Soldier.  Before dying, Furry entrusts Cap with some disturbing information:  SHIELD has been taken over from the inside.  This immediate threat kicks Cap out of his wallowing, and he teams up with Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) and Sam Wilson/The Falcon (Anthony Mackie) to find out who compromised SHIELD.

            From here, the movie becomes a series of alternating spy and action scenes, building a plot elaborate enough to keep your attention but failing to become very interesting.  The spy sequences keep the information flowing, but they are too often exposition-filled rants instead of believable character conversations.  One scene even commits the cardinal sin of allowing someone to wax poetic about the bad guy’s entire plan to Cap and Natasha.  Seemingly knowing how bad the scene is, the writers throw in a line to try to explain his ramble, but it’s too little too late.

            The action sequences fall into repetition, and are further marred by their wanton destruction.  Cap seems to prefer hand-to-hand combat, which is fun until you see his shield boomerang back to him for the fifth time and you realize that none of these folks are on his level.  His nemesis, the Winter Soldier, has a mechanical arm strong enough to level the fight, but even those battles become underwhelming after multiple encounters.  Prior to the big finish, the large fight scenes take place mostly on the streets of Washington D.C.  Cars flip, run into each other, and get shot to pieces, regardless of whether the drivers are participants or bystanders.  I normally don’t think about this too much, but I was oddly bothered by it in this movie.  There are non-public places to fight.

            The plot machinations leave little time for anything else, so once they kick in after the attack on Furry, the previously interesting characters devolve into stock superhero characters.  Early on, Natasha and Sam have gentle conversations with the troubled Cap, encouraging him to engage with the world and find some happiness.  Both characters are filled out with their own problems, and Natasha has a running joke with Cap about finding him a girlfriend.  It’s telling that the joke isn’t mentioned throughout the middle portion of the film.  Natasha’s playful attitude waters down into cheesy one-liners, Sam becomes the capable sidekick, and Cap’s preoccupation with his past disappears and reappears when the plot requires it.  If the character’s had been maintained better, it might have hidden the fact that the film is nothing more than a series of plot points.

            It’s possible that my issues with the characters are influenced by the fact that I’m not as familiar with them as other moviegoers.  I’ve given the film the benefit of the doubt on that one, but the repetitive middle section and poor writing is inexcusable.  The films mostly concerned with its jumble of escalating set pieces, but it does try to add in some ideas about our society and its use of technology.  In the end, “Captain America:  The Winter Soldier” is only an average summer blockbuster, just released a little earlier than usual.

Other Notes (Ridiculous Action Sequence Version):

Ø  At one point, I thought I saw the Winter Soldier toss up a knife, punch Cap, catch the knife, and continue fighting.  It was moving too fast to tell for sure.  So why would you do that if the audience can barely see it?

Ø  None of the glass that Cap and the Winter Soldier stands on breaks while the ship crashes, except for that one piece that allows Cap to dramatically toss his shield away.

Ø  Sam outruns a crashing ship.  To make it worse, at one point he rolls over a desk and you can clearly see him stop to get up, but still the ship doesn’t catch up to him.

Ø  The Winter Soldier blocks gunfire with his mechanical arm.  An arm isn’t wide enough to do that.  Also, have they not heard of ricochet?  The way an arm curves, he would be likely to block the bullets right up into his face.

Other Notes (Normal Version):

Ø  Yes, I spotted Stan Lee.