POBB April 27, 2022

Pick of the Brown Bag

April 27, 2022

by 

Ray Tate 

Welcome to the Pick of the Brown Bag.  In this special edition I review the film The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent.   Also known as the one where Nicolas Cage plays himself.

This is a surprising, hilarious film that also benefits from one helluva cast.  The story begins with a well choreographed action sequence that one may find in any good suspense film.  You may wonder what it's doing in a comedy, but this is the initial motivating force of the main plot twist.

The movie cuts next to our star Nicolas Cage in full Nicolas Cage mode.  This obviously is not Cage portraying his biographical self but rather a slice of his true personality mixed with reflective bits and pieces gleaned from other people.  What's interesting is that blended together, the end product resembles a comedic and tragic figure that works extremely well in character-based comedy.

Self-deprecation catalyzes Nicholas' journey and simultaneously introduces Cage's fictional inner circle.  Sharon Horgan, Lilly Sheen and Neil Patrick Harris essay these roles.  With only Harris demonstrating overt comedy chops.  The problems associated with Cage's ex-wife and his daughter are all part of the more nuanced gag, a send-up of biopics creating weight to tabloid gossip.

Unbearable goes off the rails in a good way when Nicholas Cage meets his number one fan, olive millionaire Javi Gutierrez, played by chameleon actor Pedro Pascal.  Yes, the Mandalorian.   Funny, that word isn't in the dictionary yet and requires spell check learning. 

Now, we enter absurd comedy nevertheless drawing strongly on several Abbot and Costello films.  In some of Bud's and Lou's movies such as Meets Frankenstein and The Time of Their Lives, Abbot and Costello played different characters, always comedic, in plots with dramatic consequences.

Backed by an able support team including a shockingly skull shaven Tiffany Haddish and Ike Barrinholtz, playing it straight, Nicholas Cage becomes Nicholas Cage reluctant action hero.  

In these scenes, the filmmakers parody the idea that if an actor or actress can do their own stunts they are better equipped to survive life and death situations.  They are in essence their characters.  

This farce serves Cage in curious set-pieces that evolve naturally out of a strong script.  They're at once typical of action films but also benefitting from atypical deviations.

Unbearable is a very strange, funny film and highly meta, but in ways you really don't expect.  The comedy is so well-acted, so well-directed that sometimes the dramatic moments suck you in, particularly the bromance between Cage and Javi, and you fall for the joke.

POBB November 19, 2021

Pick of the Brown Bag

November 19, 2021

by

Ray Tate

SPOILER FREE ZONE

Ghostbusters: Afterlife is a direct sequel to the first Ghostbusters film.  The oft neglected Ghostbusters II, which I have a certain fondness for, tackled a new spectral problem. 

Afterlife goes back to the structure of the original's plot to find its menace.  It furthermore serves as a genuine loving tribute to the late Harold Ramis.  

Afterlife cleverly answers the questions why now, why here and who are you going to call?  After a startling, scary prologue, the film properly begins as a light, contemporary drama about single mom Callie being forced to move out of her home to an old farm she inherits.  The farm isn't exactly a boon and exemplifies the word ramshackle quite nicely.  

Callie is kind of a mess, and not the typical mom.  Callie's daughter Phoebe is a genius.  

Her son Trevor not so much.  At least not the scientific kind.  Trevor exhibits manual dexterity and automotive skills that far surpass his age.  

All of them bear an authenticity that belies the genre they're operating in.  You could meet these people in a very good indie film that has nothing to do with spooky encounters.

The town to which they move used to be an old mining town, and it is here where the supernatural activity starts to muster.  The pacing of Afterlife grants a lot of room for the characters to breathe and grow.  The filmmakers make the wise choice of hinting at eerie things and a seething cauldron about to boil.  This isn't a spectacle film.  It builds its threat before releasing the true stakes in the final act.

Phoebe, along with her new friend Podcast, and ally, teacher Mr. Grooberson begin to discover strange-goings on.  Mr. Grooberson in fact has been tracking a curiosity that interests Phoebe and allows them to bond over science.  

The conclusion unnatural coincides with the discovery of Ghostbusters equipment.  It's not a coincidence or contrivance.  There's a good reason for this equipment being in the town.  The discovery directed.  Phoebe, Podcast, her brother Trevor and another soon find themselves forced to become a next generation of Ghostbusters.

Though the original cast lends their talent to the movie, the story centers on the younger casts' becoming.  The formation of this new team is awash with genuine sweet moments, subtle comedy and relationships that lack a hint of saccharine.  The love story can be found in the brother, sister and mother which holds the tale together.  The like stories between other cast members form quite naturally and believably.  What's more.  Nobody in the supporting cast exhibits venom.  They're all either nice, normal and/or credulous.  A refreshing change.

In technical terms, the filmmakers wisely went back to the basics of Ghostbusters.  While some if not all the ghostly figures are computer graphics, they nevertheless echo the skillful charm of the original creatures.  The cast is uniformly extraordinary and McKenna Grace who portrays Phoebe is the riveting star.

SPOILER FREE ZONE ENDS

No, you know what, no spoilers.  Go see the movie.

POBB September 5, 2021

Pick of the Brown Bag

September 5, 2021

by

Ray Tate

The Pick of the Brown Bag dares to be different.  This week, I look at anime.  Specifically, Hikari to Mizu to Daphne. Known in English as Daphne in the Brilliant Blue.

Cowboy Bebop speaks for itself.  Lupin the III will never stop talking.  Daphne in the Brilliant Blue demands a voice.   

Daphne's opening introduces you to a bunch of women who wriggle out of their garments to reveal bathing bottoms smaller than thongs.  I suspect the imagery served as a ruse to get the program to air.  Hey, look, sexy anime girls jutting out their bare cheeks.  It's a winner.

Yu Park is the one who tears out of her outfit the most, and you'll be too gob-smacked at the displays of her phenomenal strength and penchant for breaking bones to notice any skin.  

When I first saw Yu crush a mercenary's wrist in the opening, I had the same reaction King Arthur had upon seeing the killer rabbit.  Yu Park is highly dangerous and not to be toyed with.  Her ability to make grown men tremble while dressed as the graphic depicts is perfectly understandable.

Daphne begins as a science fiction story set on earth in the future.  Climate change melted the polar ice caps and flooded the world.  However, humanity survives in floating cities.  

The science fiction world building comes to the fore as a crucial plot point in some episodes while in others rests in the background.  This switch-up provides the perfect balance for each episodic narrative and the overall story.

The main characters at this point are Maia Mizuki on right in pink and her best friend Tsukasa Takagi on left.  They're typical girls of this world, seeking to gain entrance into the Ocean Agency.  Think the Coast Guard only global.  

Maia's life takes a nose-dive.  Her plans crash on the rocks.  Daphne's theme lyrics hint at her fate, but these descents put some Italian neorealist films to shame.  She finds herself at the direst of straits when an organization known as Nereids enters the picture.  

The head of Nereids, Rena recruits Maia into the organization, which does a little detective work, a little bounty hunting, a little repo.  Whatever legally pays the bills.  Things start to look up for Maia but only just.

Maia becomes quick friends with Shizuka Hayama, she of the purple hair, the tech genius who cannot hit anything she aims at. 

Shizuka's inability to hit a target indicates that Daphne is actually a comedy in disguise.  In fact, Daphne is frequently funny and sports two gut-busting comedy episodes.  I'll not say which ones.  

At the same time, when Daphne becomes serious, it's as dramatic as anything can be, and this brings me to why I made the rare move of binging the last episodes.  I just could not stop watching.

 

While you're not looking Daphne elegantly transforms into a mystery, and a fair play one at that.  The apparent throwaway moments, the science fiction elements, Maia's history, the supporting characters all blend together into an impressive seamless tapestry.

Daphne in the Brilliant Blue is a 2004 anime, available on DVD from two film companies: first Geneon and later Sentai.  As of this writing you can also stream it directly from Sentai.  Though I do not know if it is dubbed or in its original subtitled language; this version I recommend.