Disney Sequel Showdown: "Beauty & The Beast: The Enchanted Christmas"

Disney Sequel Showdown: Round #4

Beauty & The Beast: The Enchanted Christmas
Directed by Andy Knight
Starring Paige O'Hara, Robby Benson, and Tim Curry

Well Christmas is over but it doesn't mean the glad tidings of the season have to stop! So long as you keep the Christmas cheer in your hearts, and the DVDs of your favorite Christmas specials at the ready! Everyone's got their favorites, from Elf to The Grinch and Santa Claus Is Comin' Town, and if Beauty & The Beast: The Enchanted Christmas is one of your favorites…why?

During a recent stint of Christmas shopping I came across this Disney direct-to-video sequel of old on DVD for ten bucks, and impulsively purchased. I hadn't seen this thing in a decade or so. You might say nostalgia combined with a decent price led me to buying it. Well as Christmas came to a close I sat down to watch it, and sadly this is not one of the better Disney sequels. Is it downright horrible? Not "entirely".

Also spoilers ahead. Do you care? Probably not. It's a Disney sequel from 1996.

The film is told primarily in flashback, and tells us how Belle (O'Hara) brought Christmas back to the castle, much to The Beast's (Benson) disapproval. The Beast hates Christmas. Why? Well it turns out the night he, his castle, and his servants were cursed was in fact, Christmas Eve. That's…neat? Jury's still out on the value of that twist.

Also I find the timeline of this film to be incredibly flimsy. Like it's supposed to take place after the wolf attack in the original but then where does it fit in? Before the library scene? No, because that's supposed to happen like a day after the wolf attack and he wouldn't wait like a week to give her the library. Before "Something There"? I mean that would make sense if it weren't for the fact that by that point in the original they were starting to get along and The Beast is a total dick here. Ugh, I'm getting ahead of myself.

Well it turns out that there's a villainous pipe organ named Maestro Forte (Curry), who used to be the castle's composer before the enchantment. Before the enchantment, The Beast had no use for Forte, and now The Beast uses his gloomy instrumentals as a source of comfort. So Forte likes this new sense of purpose and refuses to let Belle and The Beast fall in love and brake the spell. So he manipulates events through the workings of a piccolo named Fife (Paul Reubens. Paul Reubens is in a Beauty & The Beast film. That's wrong.) hoping to derail Belle's Christmas plans and have the castle remain enchanted forever.

Alright well to expand further on that "Beast is a dick" comment, someone pretty much hit the reset button on character development here.  Belle and The Beast's whole dynamic is wrong. The Beast is supposed to be changing by this point so Belle can learn to like him. Here, Belle is like his super-optimistic girlfriend trying to get him out of his emo funk. The Beast wasn't a dating project for Belle to work on. She was his prisoner for God's sake, and yes while she did make the best of a bad situation, she still missed her father and her old life.

Okay and then at a critical point in the film Belle leaves the castle grounds to go find a Christmas tree, and things get life-threatening. Beast finds her, rescues her…and then locks her in the tower for braking her promise to not leave. But she already broke that word when she ran into the wolves! And arguably at that point The Beast was probably being even less of a dick! So why does "running away from you being a dick" not equal imprisonment but "trying to make sure you have a Merry Christmas" does??

Now Im starting to get into nitpick territory but Forte, his ability to make music, it like, creates magic energy or projections? That he uses during his song (Yeah of course Tim Curry has a song) and the climax of the film. Okay, where's the logic in that? The Enchantress was just whipping up her spell and was like "Hmm, give the composer-turned-pipe organ magic powers." Well then why didn't she give Lumiere fire powers, or Cogsworth the ability to manipulate time and space?? I know this is a Disney movie and magic can run willy nilly, but in the first Beauty & The Beast it was established that these people just got transformed. No more. No less.

The songs in the film, are pretty bland, both on the sides of lyrics and music, although Tim Curry's song is pretty enjoyable. There's a song about Lumiere and Cogsworth's friendship, and it's catchy enough, but why is it here? It adds nothing to the film. There's no subplot about them. My guess it was left out of the original or the Broadway show and they shoehorned it in here. Animation is an obvious downgrade but it's nice given direct-to-video standards and the time it was made.

It's nice to get all the original voice cast back and they're all still giving it their best (despite the material…). Tim Curry is his usual enjoyable self as Forte, and I like the twist in his character wanting to remain enchanted. Paul Reubens as Fife is okay. Bernadette Peters features as the castle decorator turned into a Christmas tree angel, which is clever and she does a nice job. But…going back to nitpicking here!

We meet her in the attic with a bunch of other Christmas decorations. Look at an average Christmas tree, there's probably 30-40 ornaments up there. Now a tree by royalty standards? Probably hundreds. Who were all these people that they became ornaments??? What was their position in the castle that they got a special, seasonal curse? The Castle's Christmas Planning Committee?? And does this mean there's a bunch of poor bastards stuck in the attic transformed as Halloween decorations? Sorry I'm nitpicking I know, because in "Be Our Guest" we saw like hundreds of plates, glasses, etc. but it makes sense there would be all those! People will argue with me about this but oh well.

Beauty & The Beast: The Enchanted Christmas works in a way that passable fan-fiction works. It's not poorly made…if you don't mind forsaking character development and decent songs. Another rewrite or two and this could have been a worthy successor…by direct-to-video standards. If this is one of your favorite Christmas specials, then I won't take that away from you. It's not a disgrace and it's not unwatchable, there's some good intentions here. If it isn't or if you haven't seen it, strictly stick to the original (It's my favorite Disney film and my favorite film of all time), and pay attention to far better Christmas specials. Personally, this will probably remain at the bottom of my Christmas DVD collection. Happy Holidays.

Film Review- "Rogue One: A Star Wars Story"

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
Directed by Gareth Edwards
Starring Felicity Jones, Diego Luna, and Ben Mendelson

We are now living in a reality where there will be a new Star Wars film every year. What a time to be alive. Though instead of just an "Episode" every year and plowing through trilogies, Disney and Lucasfilm are planning to sprinkle spin-off films or "Star Wars Stories" throughout the calendar. The first of these being Rogue One, and it has indeed set the bar for future Star Wars spin-offs.

Set many years after Revenge of the Sith, and shortly before A New Hope ("Ahhh! Prequel territory, run!!" Quiet you.) Rogue One centers on Jyn Erso (Jones), an anti-Empire street criminal who is rescued and recruited by the Rebels. It is revealed her father Galen (Mads Mikkelsen), who was taken to work for the Empire against his will when she was a child, has sent a holographic message to Rebel extremist Saw Gerrera (Forrest Whitaker). Due to her family ties, Jyn is sent with Captain Cassain Andor (Luna) and reprogrammed Imperial droid K-2SO (Alan Tudyk) to retrieve the message. What's in the message? A way to defeat the Empire's unfinished super weapon, the Death Star…

What follows are Jyn and the Rebels' attempts to steal the plans for the Death Star and gain a much needed edge over the Empire, personified here by Death Star Project Director (That's probably not his actual title but I'm calling him that) Orson Krennic (Mendelson) and the ever-looming presence of Darth Vader (James Earl Jones).

 Rogue One manages to craft a compelling and exciting story around a piece of the Star Wars timeline not many probably gave a second thought to. Most of that is credited to its wonderful cast of characters. This is a uniquely diverse and delightfully entertaining ensemble and it's a treat to go on this adventure with them. While most of us can predict how this is all going to go, you still care about these characters and want to see them to succeed. The final act of the film is an amazing ride that will keep you on the edge of your seat until the credits roll.

On the flip side of things, I did find the film's storyline lagged in parts. Some sequences were a little too slow and didn't get us very far. Additionally, as much as I loved these characters and I do feel we got just enough character development for them, I wanted so much more. I wanted to see them bond and interact more, because they're such wonderful characters. Hopefully by one way or another we will see these Rebels again.

Enough about the characters, how about the actors who play them? Felicity Jones as Jyn is obviously the center of the film, and she plays her perfectly with the right balance of gruff and heart. Diego Luna as Captain Andor does a fine job but is more often than not outshined by his co-stars. One of those co-stars being Alan Tudyk as K-2SO, who is a real scene stealer. Donnie Yen and Jiang Wen make a delightfully awesome pair as best friends/Rebel warriors Chirrut Imwe and Baze Malbus.

Ben Mendelson as our villain Director Krennic, is sadly a weak villain. Mendelson plays him well enough, but he's merely just an Empire officer desperate to rise through the ranks and please Darth Vader. Speaking of Darth Vader, this is the most terrifying he's ever been on film. He's used sparingly throughout the film, but when he's used it's incredibly effective.

Couple more notes. The film is beautiful. Stunning visuals and cutting-edge effects bring the Star Wars locations of old to life in a glorious new way, and the battle scenes are incredible to watch. There are plenty of cameos and Easter Eggs to please the fans out there so keep your eyes open. More on that, and being cryptic to avoid spoilers, two characters from the original trilogy are brought back for a significant amount of the film through the use of Industrial Light & Magic's digital technology. It's both eerie and amazing to see what they've done, and hard to talk about without seeing the film, but oh boy is it cool. Lastly, while Star Wars films usually have such iconic music, Michael Giacchino's score is somewhat forgettable, which is sad given his recent eargasmic work in Doctor Strange.

So Rogue One is not a perfect film, but it's incredibly well-made and incredibly entertaining. It's a film all Star Wars fans should love for years to come. If all Star Wars Stories are to be like this, then I think it's fair to say, it's a great time to be a Star Wars fan.

Also, if you'd like to see what some fans thought going into the film opening night, check out this piece I did for Burlington Cable Access TV (BCAT).

Film Review- "Moana"

"Oh man here we go. Chris is going to blindly fangirl all about the new Disney film regardless of how good or bad it really is."

Hey….shut up…and that's exactly what I'm going to do because Moana is awesome.

Moana
Directed by John Musker & Ron Celements
Starring Auli'i Cravalho and Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson

Let me just say how nice it is to be in the period we're calling The Disney Revival. For the unitiated that's the string of films that began in 2009 with The Princess & The Frog and continues up to the present day. The Mouse's animated output hasn't been this consistent in quality since the Disney Renaissance in the nineties, and if you still don't know what I'm talking about consult this. Point I'm trying to make here, is that there was no doubt that Moana would deliver, and deliver it did.

The film opens by flash-backing to a time when the goddess Te Fiti created life and rose multiple islands to the surface of the ocean. Once her work was complete she too became an island. Shortly afterward the shape-shifting demigod Maui (Johnson), stole her heart and source of power, a ponamu stone. Shortly after that, Maui loses the heart and his magical fish hook in a battle with the lava monster Te Ka, cursing the world for thousands of years to come.

Back to present day, and Moana (Cravalho), the daughter of the chief on the island of Motunui, discovers the ponamu stone, and learns from her grandmother (Rachel House) the ocean has chosen her to return the heart of Te Fiti and bring peace back to the world. Against her father's wishes, Moana leaves her island home to find Maui and get his assistance in returning the heart, and therefore save the world.

The story of Moana is simple in structure, but rich in themes of identity, heritage, and self-worth. You can surely draw parallels between Moana and fellow Disney princesses (She dreams of more, and while a certain little mermaid wants to go on land and her father wants her to stay in the sea, Moana wants to go into the sea and her father wants to stay on land. Man, imagine the fan-fictions.). Nevertheless, Moana is a well-developed character. She wants to do right by her family, but she can't shake the desire to forge her own path, and she struggles to define who she really is. In turn Maui is another well developed Disney lead. On the surface he may seem like he's there for just comic relief, but he's an undoubtedfly flawed, three-dimensional character who also has his own issues of identity to work with.

Together these two characters work together so well, creating another dynamic Disney duo, that build off and strengthen one another throughout the film. Their voice actors, the newcomer Cravalho and everybody's favorite superstar The Rock bring these characters to life and have great chemistry. Cravalho is a true tour de force as Moana, and her performance is the foundation of the entire film. The Rock surprisingly gives a truly heartfelt performance, with his typical charm and humor as Maui. The rest of this voice cast you're not likely to recognize, but each actor embodies his or her character perfectly. Special props go to Rachel House as Moana's grandmother Tala, and Alan Tudyk as Hei Hei.

That's right. That's Alan Tudyk clucking away as that chicken. Give the man an Oscar…by the way how come the animal sidekicks don't talk or have their own songs in Disney films anymore? I miss it…

Speaking of songs, they're unbelievably catchy, crafted by Opetaia Foa'i and Hamilton himself, Lin Manuel Miranda. Each piece is a perfect blend of beautiful and bouncy. Cravalho, only sixteen years old, endures pure awe and chills in many of Moana's songs. Guys, The Rock can sing!! He's only got one number in the film but he nails it. Also, Jermaine Clement of Flight of The Concords shows up for a very interesting song as Tamatoa, a giant crab monster.

The animation in Moana is gorgeous. The setting of South Pacific islands, combined with the story's magical elements, give way for some truly breathtaking visuals, making Moana a real masterpiece of a feast (masterfeast?) for the eyes. You can clearly see that the technology has improved in the short time between Frozen and now.

Moana will rightfully takes its place in the parthenon of Disney animated classics. Wonderful characters, catchy songs, and beautiful animation are the ingredients for another Disney winner, that should get all the repeat viewings in the years to come.

...I feel like I should touch more on the concept of Disney Animation Eras. Sometimes The Package Feature Era is called The War-Time Era, because while they are all package features, that's all they could afford to make because the majority of the studios funding was directed towards making World War II related features, so you know either is appropriate. Also, sometimes The Dark Age is clumped in with The Bronze Age because really, is anyone from Disney really going to call a period of the company "The Dark Age"?

…I should quit while I'm ahead…

Film Review- "Doctor Strange"

Doctor Strange
Directed by Scott Derrickson
Starring Benedict Cumberbatch, Chiwetel Ejiofor, and Tilda Swinton

The fourteenth film of the Marvel Cinematic Universe has been in theaters for almost a month now. After seeing Doctor Strange multiple times in theaters, as much as I enjoy and love it, I do find it could have been a better product.

Stephen Strange (Cumberbatch) is an accomplished yet arrogant neurosurgeon, who ends up in a terrible car accident, rendering his hands practically useless. After modern medicine fails him again and again, he seeks out the secret compound of Kamar-Taj for other methods of healing. There he learns of things such as multi-dimensions, the astral plane and, in layman's terms, sorcery.

Strange begins to learns the ways of the mystic arts under the guidance of The Ancient One (Swinton) and fellow sorcerer Mordo (Ejiofor). As Strange continues his teachings, the vindictive sorcerer Kaecilius (Mads Mikkelsen) and his army of zealots put into motion a plan to sacrifice the world to the being Dormammu and his dark dimension.

It's easy to compare Strange's origin and character to that of Tony Stark/Iron Man. An arrogant know-it-all goes through something traumatic, is given extraordinary gifts and learns humility, just as a large evil threat-in-the-sky looms overhead. Without giving too much away, I personally saw a bit of parallels between the story of this film and the one of the first Thor film. There's nothing special about Doctor Strange's origin story at the base level, but it's the characters unique setting and abilities that elevate it.

The idea of magic and multiple dimensions is something new to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and the film spectaulrly skyrockets the franchise into this new territory, displaying some truly amazing effects and set pieces for these characters to muck about through. Michael Giacchino's epic score only helps to bring the film's unique tone and aura to life.

Speaking of characters, this cast might be one of the finest Marvel's ever assembled. Benedict Cumberbatch of course is pure gold as the titular character. A fan favorite since we knew this film would happen, he embodies every aspect of the character, and brings both the proper amount of gravitas and sincerity. Chiwetel Ejiofor gives a biblical fierceness to Mordo, that was a highlight of the film for me. Tilda Swinton is both strong and sweet as The Ancient One. Benedict Wong as...Wong, is a hell of a scene stealer. Mads Mikkelsen, while he does a fine job, is another underdeveloped Marvel villain. Rachel McAdams, while she does a fine job, is another underdeveloped Marvel love interest.

This is where I transition into my problems with the film, and it's not just with McAdams and Mikkelsen. While I can praise the performances of the supporting cast, the background and character development left to them in the script is a lot to be desired. McAdams as Christine Palmer is more a plot device then a character and is one of Marvel's weakest leading ladies. We're given two lines of exposition about Kaecilius's backstory, and they're so cryptic we're left to our imagination to figure out where it all went south with him. It's hinted a few times that Mordo's got a dark background of his own (Those of you comic fans know Mordo is one of Doctor Strange's biggest villains), but we learn literally nothing. "You've no idea...the things I've done" he states in the film, and we're left to reply "You're right. We really don't." I understand that this is Strange's origin story, but if these characters are to be a part of his reigon of the MCU, they need to be as well developed as he is. One can only hope that in the inevitable sequel these characters will get their dues.

Is this my first sign of superhero film fatigue? Fourteen films into this franchise, are the patterns all too clear for me now I can't just turn a blind eye, or am I simply doubting the nerd path I've chosen? No of course not, I'm being dramatic. But the problems in Doctor Strange are problems other MCU films that have come before it have had, and I like many, hope to see these problems rectified going forward. Yes the plot of Doctor Strange is a familiar formula, but it's a winning formula and Marvel manages to give it a distinct mold every turn.

So do I consider Doctor Strange a perfect film? No. Do I still love it, consider it one of Marvel's best, and is it one of my favorite Marvel origin stories since Captain America: The First Avenger? Yes. Will it probably be on my Top 10 of the year, even though Captain America: Civil War will be on there too, and will you all roll your eyes at me for being so predictable? More than likely, but haters gonna hate. Complete with stunning visuals, a tremendous cast and beautiful music, stapled in with the usual tropes and formulas, Doctor Strange is a magnificent addition to the Marvel Cinematic Universe. It's pure magic.

Film Review- "Sausage Party"

There are moments in every filmgoer's life, when he finds himself sitting in the theater, staring up at the big silver screen. His eye's wide open like a deer in headlights, paralyzed with shock at what he's witnessing, but cannot look away. His jaw hangs open, as his hand muffles the only words that can escape his breathe, "What. The. *Bleep*"

...This is my review of Sausage Party.

Sausage Party
Directed by Greg Tiernan and Conrad Vernon
Starring Seth Rogen, Kristen Wiig, and Nick Kroll

You know me. You know I love Disney and Pixar, but really I'm a sucker for any good animated film. For the longest time, I had wanted someone to come along and give audiences a send up of the genre. For someone to push the boundaries of the art form, and show that "animated" isn't a synonym for "kiddie". A raunchy, satirical, and adult-oriented animated film...Be careful what you wish for kids. Especially when Seth Rogen is the one granting those wishes.

Sausage Party takes place in the world of an average supermarket, where the edible inhabitants have always believed that when they are purchased, they are being chosen by the gods (humans) to leave the store and enter The Great Beyond, i.e. Their heaven.

For a sausage named Frank (Rogen) and a bun named Brenda (Wiig), entering The Great Beyond means them getting to...consummate their love. When they're chosen together, a series of unfortunate events leads Frank to question their entire existence. He goes on a quest to discover the truth about food, even if it means costing him the love of Brenda and the respect of the entire food community.

Sausage Party's greatest strength is its shock value, and my god do I mean shock. You will constantly be in awe with what you're witnessing. From the opening song to the very end you're on a roller coaster of cringe and crude humor, and at the end of that roller coaster is...you have to see it to believe it my friends...

The film's humor can basically fall into two categories: food puns, and sex jokes. This is probably not everybody's cup of tea. Personally, I was laughing quite a bit throughout. Partially because the jokes were clever and funny, mostly because I was in disbelief at the balls they had to took to make this film.

Hidden behind all this obscenity, is actually a clever story that commentates on religion, belief, and individuality. Who would of thought? Seth Rogen & Evan Goldberg have proved before they can be as clever as they can be crude. Unfortunately, you might forget that when you're witnessing a lesbian taco shell voiced by Salma Hayek fight lustful urges to get it on with Kristen Wiig's bun character.

At this point, pretty much everyone in this film has already lent their voice to an animated film, and everyone does a fine job. Ironically, Frank is probably the most three-dimensional character Rogen's ever played in an animated film (That's not a pun on the CGI animation I swear.). Michael Cera does a nice job as Barry, a deformed sausage. Nick Kroll as the film's villain, plays a perfect douche...ok that one was a pun. Most of the voice cast is almost unrecognizable, from Edward Norton doing a Woody Allen impression as a bagel, Paul Rudd as the douchey dork manager of the supermarket, and James Franco as a druggie who manages to speak with the food.

Pay freaking attention during that scene. Don't do bath salts, kids...

Sausage Party is not a film for everyone. I enjoy a film like this once in awhile, but I'm going to need some time before I watch it again...like years. But it does a perfect job of satirizing the animated genre, deliver a thoughtful message, and leave a lasting impression on its audience.

Especially that last one. Christ, I won't be able to eat for weeks...

Film Review- "Suicide Squad"

Suicide Squad
Directed by David Ayer
Starring Will Smith, Margot Robbie, Joel Kinnaman and Viola Davis

The third time is definitely not the charm for the DC Extended Universe, as Suicide Squad fails to give the franchise that severe boost of quality it desperately needs. It suffers a lot of the same problems that Batman Vs Superman: Dawn of Justice did. But just like I said with Batman Vs Superman, I say to you here the reviews are being a lot harsher than they need to be, and there is still a little good in this film.

In the wake of Superman's death, director of A.R.G.U.S. Amanda Waller (Davis) moves to assemble a team of extraordinary-yet-expendable individuals to carry out high-risk missions for the government. Said individuals are a bunch of criminals and super villains, including but not limited to hit man Floyd Lawton a.k.a Deadshot (Smith), the twisted Harley Quinn (Robbie), and lowlife theif Captain Boomerang (Jai Courtney, who I can't believe I'm about to say isn't the worst part of this film).

When a deadly, supernatural threat in the form of The Enchantress (Cara Delevigne) threatens to rip the world apart, Waller assembles the Task Force X, led by Colonel Rick Flagg (Kinnaman) to quite simply save the world. Meanwhile Harley's beau, the clown prince of crime The Joker (Jared Leto) is on a rampage to reunite with his beloved.

If there was a script for this film most of it got thrown out when the footage was being edited. There's a big lack of character development, some actions and movements from scene to scene make little sense. With the exception of Deadshot and Harley, most of the team stays pretty two-dimensional. There's a romantic angle between Flagg and Dr. June Moore (the woman The Enchantress has possessed) but its so unnecessary and these characters aren't given their proper due so we can't get invested in it.

The final battle is so blatantly ripping off the final act of The Avengers it's not even funny, except with The Avengers it was with characters we had grown to love, and we actually cared what was going to happen. You could almost forgive that, if the action wasn't completely generic. Also I'm sorry, but it just makes zero sense why the US government would send common street criminals, to fight a thousand-year-old witch with unholy powers. Captain America wouldn't be sent to fight The Dark Elves. Batman wouldn't be called to fight General Zod…actually they both would still do those things and win because they're awesome. Anyway!

Well I told you that this film wasn't as bad as they were making it out to be, and I've probably proven myself wrong by now…or have I?!?…I don't know. The cast is the film's saving grace. Will Smith is giving his best as Deadshot, and Margot Robbie is an absolute perfect Harley Quinn. I can't believe I'm going to say this but I enjoyed Jai Courtney as Captain Boomerang. Joel Kinnaman plays Rick Flagg as a solid straight man to the Squad, but you can tell that there was supposed to be more to his character, that was either cut or he can't bring it. Viola Davis is Viola Davis as Amanda Waller. I could comment on Cara Delevigne as The Enchantress, if I thought it was actually her on the screen and not mostly CGI effects and a voice over artist. She's not really a villain or a character. More of a plot device sadly. Everyone else is sadly either sidelined or misused.

Ask for Jared Leto as our newest screen-adaptation of The Joker? Well the marketing lied to us. He's not in this film as much as we were led to believe. He does good work, but we need to see more of him before we can get a full taste of what this new Joker is like.

Finally the music in the film is top notch. Not the score itself, I honestly couldn't identify the instrumentals of this film to save my life, but the song choices. The variation of song choices is all over the place, but they're carefully selected and match the setting and tone of the film.

So how I can I still even recommend Suicide Squad to you? Well if you lower your expectations enough, you could end up enjoying this film to a degree. It's not going to be something a lot of people will rewatch over and over, but it is not unwatchable. There's still some pieces worth checking out, like the performances, the soundtrack, and there are some cool scenes that build up the DCEU, some including Leto's Joker and the return of Affleck's Batman. If you skip this film, it probably won't hurt you going forward in the franchise. If you do see it, great. There are worse ways to spend two-and-a-half hours, and you'll be introduced to some interesting characters you're likely to see more of.

Let's all keep in mind that this film was practically in the can before the Batman Vs Superman fiasco and Warner Bros. changed the regime overseeing the DCEU. So hopefully the worst is behind us, maybe the fourth time's the charm with Wonder Woman, and these characters/performances get better treatment going forward. Even the "Worst Heroes Ever" deserve something more.

Film Review- "Ghostbusters"

Ghostbusters
Directed by Paul Feig
Starring Melissa McCarthy, Kristen Wiig, Kate McKinnon, and Leslie Jones

Let me just get some things out of the way, because I know I'll have to address them at some point. I was never against a third Ghostbusters film. I was never against a new team becoming the center of the story. I was never against that new team being all female. Despite what everyone was saying, I still believed that there was potential for this film to be great…but for me, it ended up just being okay.

The story of the new Ghostbusters begins when estranged friends and physicists Abby Yates and Erin Gilbert (McCarthy and Wiig) are called upon to investigate some paranormal activity when someone discovers their book on the paranormal. After a first successful...ghost busting? The girls decide to look further into their research, along with Erin's lab partner Dr. Jillian Holtzman (McKinnon) and New York City subway worker Patty Tolan (Jones). The team soon discovers there's more to all these ghosts appearing throughout the city, and uncover a far more dangerous threat that could destroy the world.

First off, the story is pretty thin. There's not much to the basic "bunch of misfits are called upon to save the world from some great threat" plot. The heart of the story is the relationship between Abby and Erin, but it's never really given enough attention for us as an audience to connect or care. That, and the film pretty much hits every story beat the first Ghostbusters hit. The characters think they can make ghost busting a business, the team is assembled, they gain attention, they get on the wrong side of the law…if you've seen the first one, you know where this is all going to wind up. The villain is weak, and his rise to power, and his plan, are underdeveloped.

But this is a comedy first and foremost. How funny is this, and how does the cast do? I only found myself laughing out loud a few times in the film. Most of the time they were just getting smiles and smirks out of me. The humor isn't crude, and it isn't clever, it's just kind of generic. The leading ladies, I always took issue with McCarthy and Wiig being cast in this film. Not because I don't think they're talented. They both already have great careers and these roles could have been given to dozens of other actresses more deserving of a bigger picture and a chance to show their comedic chops.

McCarthy has never been my favorite comedienne, and she gets the least laughs out of all four. Kristen Wiig is misused as mostly being the straight woman to everyone else. Kate McKinnon and Leslie Jones are absolutely hilarious. Chris Hemsworth actually ends up being one of the funniest people in this film, as the Ghostbusters' dim-witted receptionist. Another thing the film has going for it is the effects, which are incredibly vibrant and eye-catching.

At the end of the day though I just have to get nitpicky here and ask, why does this film exist within a different continuity from the first two films? Especially when Murray, Akroyd, Hudson, Weaver, and Potts all show up for cameos. Who's to say they all couldn't have spent the same amount of time on set reprising their old roles here opposed to these faceless incidental characters? Why couldn't this new team have heard of the old and been inspired by them, instead of this unnecessary reboot of the franchise? I digress.

Ghostbusters isn't bad, and it isn't great. It's just there, as a sometimes funny and sometimes charming film. Ghostbuster purists shouldn't be offended, and comedy fans should be satisfied. It's a harmless little film that probably won't gain the following of the original, but will still have an audience as time goes on.

….Reviewin' makes me feel good.