This film is a comedic look at serious topics such as communism, feminism, racism, and other ethical problems of today's society. "The Dictator" (Larry Charles, 2012) stars Sacha Baron Cohen as the leading character "Aladeen," dictator of Wadiya and Anna Faris as "Zoey," an American idealist. This is a film that would entertain people with a worldly view and understanding of proper behavior. Closed-minded individuals would probably not "get" the sense of humor of "The Dictator."
The Helicopter Ride
So, basically, the story has a dictator that would normally be the antagonist in any other film become the hero and makes the viewer root for him to succeed in saving his dictatorship to avoid the country's democratic constitution's passing and allowing a greedy conspirator Tamir (Ben Kingsley) to sell oil rights to the "Big 3" executives. It's a comical look at the what-ifs in the Osama Bin Laden instance; it pokes fun at America's values and ethics. The funniest to me was the helicopter scene, where Aladeen and Nadal (Jason Mantzoukas) are talking in their own language about New York's tourist attractions (Statue of Liberty and fireworks) and reference a prior conversation about Bin Laden being a freeloading houseguest after his body double was killed. Do you see where this is headed? The older couple only understand certain words and combine gestures--it's crazy! (Statue of Liberty+mimic of fireworks explosion+Bin Laden=terrorist, right?) Aladeen's goat-loving body double is acting on the conspirator's behalf and his stupidity is comic relief throughout the film. He orders anyone who he perceives as disagreeing with him to be executed but finds out in America none were actually killed--they all live in NY with a common hatred of him. He meets an American woman, Zoey, who he compares to a boy physically, laughs at her hairy armpits, yet ends up being rescued by her many times. She teaches him that most of his stereotypes and prejudices have been wrong in her own naive way. I won't spoil the ending, but know that you will feel torn near the end of the film whether to root for his failure or success: the lesser of two evils, I suppose.
Zoey gets Aladeen from the police station
The characters were hilarious, even when they were wrong. They are so dysfunctional that you have to laugh at their prejudices because they don't know any better. Zoey is an extremist to NOT having prejudices to the point that she doesn't show proper leadership in managing her business. The non-speaking characters, such as the women guards, are like the Austin Powers women guards in their portrayal. Even the scientist creating the nuclear missile falls into a comedic stance by arguing with Aladeen whether the tip of the missile should be round or pointed.
Bright colors and lighting, fake beards, and a corpse head used as a prank all help to keep the comedic feel of the film. The music even was hilarious: one part had a long introduction of a familiar Snoop Dogg song and as soon as I bobbed my head the words came on and were Middle Eastern sounding rather than English! (Rather than the "D-O-double G" it was "the Aladeen".) I noticed several times the soundtrack was used to keep the laughs rolling. Within the plot, the dictator was made lovable because none of the people he ordered to be executed were dead. Otherwise it would have been harder to get the audience to sympathize with him.
Female Soldiers
Once again, I would say that only certain people will understand the humor in this film. Honestly, "Family Guy" fans will love it. The people who are being placed in the spotlight of the film, like stereotyping racists and those who believe girl babies should be thrown in the garbage will probably not like the film. Oh, and if you have a problem with sexual humor this is not the film for you either. Otherwise, you will fall out laughing while watching this film.
“Men in Black III” (Barry Sonnenfeld, 2012) stars Will Smith
& Tommy Lee Jones in encore performances with Josh Brolin as Agent K’s
younger self. Without taking away from the two others’ importance in setting up
for this film, this was the best MIB yet.
We have the characters setup in prior films, so in their
usual manner Agent J talks too much and Agent K rarely talks. MIB (the first
one) is key to the story because K recruits K, and MIB 2 sets up their loving
rivalry partnership that is in a strain at the beginning of this film. Will
Smith’s character wants to know why his partner is so secretive and where did
his liveliness go—if it ever existed. The villain, Boris the Animal (Jermaine
Clement) spent 40 years in maximum security on the moon and resents K for blowing
his arm off before his arrest. Boris wants to save his race by taking over the
planet Earth and uses time travel to go back and stop K from preventing the
takeover. Presently, K ceases to exist and aliens are invading earth. So J also
goes back in time the day before Boris and K have a standoff to keep K from
being killed. Long story short, they save the planet and K—but Agent J learns
what exactly happened back then to change K’s life so much. Young K is more
talkative, philosophical, and has his eye on Agent O. By the end of the film, J
and K’s partnership is solidified and will never be questioned again.
'Boris the Animal'
It would be unrealistic to pretend not to notice the
characters’ aging. I couldn’t help being distracted from remembering the first
time I saw MIB in the 90s (1997). It makes the characters sort of like family,
and this film did just that. Rather than try to make the story pick up at MIB
2, it allowed for aging. Even Smith’s character says, “I’m getting too old for
this…” Brolin does a great job at playing a younger version of Tommy Lee Jones’
character. And Jones is always the same character. Clement was convincing as
the antagonist. Even when his future and past selves face off, it is a great
scene. He is the same yet distinguishes between the two at different levels of
“know-it-all” villain.
1969 Agent O
The film’s theme is consistent with the other two, and there
is no transition of viewer imagination required to follow the story. The
effects were in true MIB comedic style. I liked the alien fish that talked on
the stove. The neuro-transponder dialogue was not as witty as it has been in
the past, but the film fully makes up for it in plot. Music was used heavily to
set the mood once the story moved back to the 60s, but the wardrobe,
hairstyles, and automobiles made the transition smooth as well. It was hilarious when 60s Agent K pulls out a cell phone as big as a 2-liter soda.
Whether you are a MIB fan or not, you will enjoy this film if you
have watched another one. The story has matured as much as its 90s audience
has, and the end is tear-worthy—so have your tissues ready. It is still a
comedic/action/sci-fi/thriller film with a family twist at the end. I’d
recommend to see it!
I could not give this to my friends to watch. They simply refused. I told them, "Things we learned in history classes are used in the film; it's crazy! The vampires explain the craziness that normal people wouldn't do it." Again, nope. So I gave them "Ted" to watch. Along with this film...
Abraham Lincoln
Vampire Hunter
This film's screenplay and novel was written by Seth Grahame-Smith, Directed by Timur Bekmambetov (please don't ask me to say his name), and produced by--ummm--Tim Burton along with Timur Bekmambetov and Jim Lemley. Abraham Lincoln is played by Benjamin Walker Davis --See photo below; Abe Lincoln. Wow.
Okay, how can I make you love it? This film would probably appeal to our beloved conspiracy theorists. Okay, give me a minute.
I'm back, with great news that I will save for last!
I must say I went
into this with the sole purpose of reviewing a BAD film to learn how NOT to
make a film. Honestly, I tried. And after the opening scenes I was sure that
horrible CGI where the character was hurled upward with such force that he ripped through a wooden building—did I mention it was “up”? I am most critical of some
of the CGI, it’s ability to blend with live actors, and whether or not some of
it was done by someone saying, “Look what I can do!” versus, “How can we make
this scene work?” But, because I absolutely love the storyline, I will say the
fanciful just adds to the film’s surreal premise.
We are all (many of
us, anyway) familiar with key events in our nation’s history that led to the
Civil War, battles fought during the Civil War, and maybe even quite a bit of
Abe Lincoln’s personal life. I set out to find a bad movie to watch once and
one of the worst was listed as D.W. Griffith's
"Abraham Lincoln"1930 film (click the link if you’d like
to see it, I believe it is now public domain unless Ted bought it and plans to jazz it up a
bit). Sadly, I liked it despite the bad acting. D.W., Lord, bless him…
So, with that in mind, I expected more of Lincoln's timeline in this film. The film did not include Abe’s earlier
relationships. I expected Anne Rutledge to be killed by a vampire, but she
wasn’t. Abe’s courtship and marriage to Mary Todd (the great Sally Field) was
probably adequate romance since it is
an action/horror-ish-type film. The film begins with a scripture: Genesis 17:5.
Already we are expected to think of the morality and spiritual implications of
the content. The film begins with little Abe trying to rescue his best friend
Will, who is black (already conflict for antebellum U.S.), being beaten by an oppressive employer/landowner. So he beats Abe, too, and his
father steps in. This act of bravery costs the father his job AND the evil ex-employer
demands all debts paid. One night, little Abe spies on the man downstairs
taking a bite out of his mother’s wrist. (Lincoln lost his mother at an early
age to “milk sickness” and the film’s visible symptoms correspond to the actual
illness). Since I already know it’s a vampire movie, I know her blood has
been demanded to repay the family’s debts. Little Abe promises his father to
never seek revenge. But years pass and Abe reasons that his father’s died so he is no
longer bound by the oath. So what does he do? Get drunk. It’s in the bar that
he encounters Henry Sturges (Dominic Cooper). Alright; Abe sneaks up on his
victim. Gets ready to pounce. We are not surprised it’s a vampire at this
point. It’s also no surprise that Abe’s ball gets stuck in the creature’s eye.
Apparently bullets looked like balls back then. Henry shows up in the nick of
time to rescue Abe and hence the story begins.
(Deep Breath
Inhaled---) Henry recruits Abe to be a vampire slayer and gives him “Karate
Kid” basic training. Another of my suspension of suspension-of-disbelief
moments happened when Henry tells Abe to chop down the tree in one swing. Yea,
he eventually does it. He has to if we are to believe he can take on swarms of
these creatures later in the film. And the foreshadowing advice from Henry?
“Always have a contingency plan.” So throughout the film’s earlier moments, the
complex network of vampires is revealed. Abraham Lincoln says, “Henry, there
are far more than I ever thought possible: pharmacists…innkeepers…pastors…”
(symbolism, for conspiracy theorists) Well, Abe works in a store for Speed
(Jimmi Simpson). All this is leading somewhere, I promise. Abe asks Henry after
chopping heads off many undercover vampires, “When do I get to kill Jack
Barnes?” Somewhere in the midst of all
the killing Abe meets Mary. He tries to leave her alone to protect her from the
truth (corresponds to the real-life engagement being called off; creative), but
of course we already know they get married. Abe decides to “put away childish
things” as we see him retire the silver-tipped axe like Michael Jordan. Abe
runs for president, suffers defeat by the union (under the command of
vampires—whom at one point a voice-over credits horrific historical events such
as Native American massacres and missing/murdered slaves who were acquired from
the worldwide vampire network in Africa). This council of vampires allows Abe
to be in office, but they want Abe to “kill your master,” who is Henry—oh did I
forget to mention that the reason Henry needs Abe to kill vampires is because
he is one himself, and to justify the film’s premise vampires cannot kill other
vampires? Henry is a good vampire because he lost his true love to evil,
thirsty vampires years ago.
Alright,
fast-forward to the White House. By this point Abe’s childhood friend, Will,
has reappeared to fight alongside Abe. One female vampire (she’s pretty high on
the vampire political totem pole) sneaks into the Lincoln domain and bites
their son. She snuck and read Abe’s diaries, so she knows the truth. There’s a
slight “Pet Sematary” moment when Abe has to tell Mary that if Henry brings
their son back to life, he won’t be who he was—he’ll be a what—and different. He
eventually dies, and Mary Todd Lincoln wants revenge. So, vampires take over
the Confederate army at the Battle of Gettysburg; the Union soldiers didn’t
know what hit them. That scenario explained the actual mass casualties; good
one. Abe is at the dinner table with Mary arguing about effectiveness in
battle, and realizes his fork is the answer. So, he takes up all the silver
from the people and mass produces weapons made of silver to fight the vampires
(Confederate army). Mary is afraid and runs away. Speed betrays Abe and informs
the vampires of the shipment of silver on a train. Abe, Henry, and Will are
aboard the train ready for them. So is Speed’s trifling self. Well, this huge
battle aboard the train leads to a
burning bridge and the vampires discover Speed tricked them (turns out he
wasn’t trifling at all!) and the crates are full of rocks. Good guys win in the
film, Mary gets her revenge, and …oh, how?? Abe says, “This isn’t the only
railroad.” Ahhhh!! The underground railroad (which Mary Todd Lincoln and her
servant were travelling). Smart. However, the quote of a vampire earlier in the
film echoes silently: “There’s thousands of us here; we won’t stop till this
whole country’s ours…”
As far as actors’
portrayals go, I am impressed with all performances. I feel actors braced the
special effects, light weight-bearing walls, in places the CGI wouldn’t have
held up. Portraying actual historical figures must be severe pressure, but I am
completely convinced of the characters, and they have surpassed my
expectations. I expected Abraham Lincoln to be a boring, monotone guy, but
instead his variety of emotional responses throughout the film in contrasting
situations is commendable. Examples: vampire slayer vs. love-struck boyfriend,
love-struck boyfriend vs. U.S. President, U.S. President vs. drunk in a bar.
Abraham’s pocket
watch and Little Willie Lincoln’s toy sword were motifs in the film. Of course,
a period film of that era has an amber
overtone that combines with the drab clothing to give a feeling of hopelessness
in some scenes and you can feel the poverty in others. The scene with the
moving pictures bridges that era with our own by using technology for
exposition, yet keeping it true to the era (the light bulb is replaced with
a candle). The sound effects and music
were used properly within the film. I only felt let-down by that whole
throwing-the-vampire-up-through-a-wall thing and faux planks come flying
outward. The fight scene with the horse-jumping was strange. It’s dreamlike and
detours from the rest of the film. It was definitely something nobody has
thought of (or maybe attempted to do?) before. I was not impressed with the
burning bridge, although if I were to make a movie and need a bridge to burn,
that would be the way to do it. I think the fight lasted too long, leaving
enough time for the mind to wander and start to wonder: “Are they not concerned
with those flames in the train car about to burn them up? Is it humanly
possible to fight that hard under extreme temperatures like that? The vampires
aren’t human, so I understand them,
but the humans…how?” The amber and sometimes orange/red tint to the film is
contrasted by a flashback that’s greenish. It was effective in creating the
atmosphere the director (Bekmambetov) was aiming for. I absolutely –no, not
love, but STRONG LIKE the vampires
emerging from the mural in New Orleans and starting to fight! Those effects and
action blended SO well. I also liked
the portrayal of the White House being still under construction, which is
probably true to that setting (I haven’t researched that fact, but it was
impressive, nonetheless).
Well, no matter what
I said previously, in the end I still liked this film. It was a surprise
package, I suppose. If my opinion doesn’t count then…
…remember those
friends I told you about earlier? I have verbal and written permission to quote
Major Chaney’s 3 a.m. text: “I absolutely loved the Abraham Lincoln movie. It
was, in my opinion, better than Ted. I adored the ending where they alluded to
his death with the “time waits for no one” thing before he left fore the
theatre. Also loved how last scene was in the bar as if to say the battle still
continues. Thumbs up, Shawn” Did I
mention that Major Chaney is never gonna admit he is wrong? Watch this film;
you will be impressed.
Unless, of course,
you’re one of “them”
D.W. Griffith's 1930 film, "Abraham Lincoln"
Walter Huston as LINCOLN and Kay Hammond as MARY TODD LINCOLN
Enjoy!!
